


Reminder

by Vandereer



Series: Tiger by the Tail side stories [2]
Category: One Piece
Genre: ADHD Luffy, Abusive Parents, Abusive Relationships, Alcohol, Anxiety, Drug Mentions, Eventual Happy Ending, Grilled Cheese, Heavy Angst, Hurt No Comfort, M/M, Mutual Pining, Smoking, Trans Portgas D. Ace
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-03
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2020-07-30 15:22:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 22,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20099380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vandereer/pseuds/Vandereer
Summary: Ace arrives at the Baratie, planning on taking Sanji out on a date...Right before Sanji’s brothers show up to ruin everything.





	1. If You're Free...

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be simple fluff - Jesse’s last words 2019
> 
> STRONG FEELINGS about Germa incoming, BOY HOWDY I got mad while re-reading parts of WCI for this thing, if you stan the Vinsmokes this is possibly not the fic for you. Also this gets pretty dark, CWs for alcohol, domestic abuse, references to suicide, homophobia, references to car accidents and hospitals.  
(No beta reader, Jesse said fuck punctuation)

"Sanji you messed-up son of a bitch! You deaf or something?"

The sous-chef of the Baratie turns to the rôtisseur with a flip of his hair, along with a snarl pulling up his lip, "What did you say? I couldn't hear over how much mediocrity there is in this kitchen!"

"Tables twenty-seven, fourteen - five! Another waiter just bailed.” Patty barks at him with spittle flying out from behind his horsey teeth. His face is about as pleasant to look at as the hunks of raw meat he’s carving up, less so in Sanji’s opinion.

Sanji stalks over to the counter and picks up the plated food, just in time to avoid a half-hearted swipe from Patty's carving knife.

"I’d say you should do the serving, but you’d probably break the plates in your fat hands!”

"Hey… while you were arguing...” Carne says, over a huge container of beef bourguignon, “I think someone snuck in through the back door." 

"Maybe you could go deal with it when you’ve delivered those,” Patty sneers at him as he cuts a fillet of pork into medallions. “Just because your dad named you sous-chef doesn’t make you any less of a greenhorn!”

"Eat shit Patty. Oh, and if I find one more dick-shaped hole in the cantaloupes I'm going to pay someone to date you."

Patty opens his mouth to respond but Sanji is already gliding out the door with dishes stacked on his arm.

When he pushes aside the heavy kitchen doors he feels refreshed, leaving Patty speechless always put him in a good mood. Such a good mood that he doesn’t even mind pulling double duty as chef and waiter. From the other end of the packed restaurant he can see the latest of the new meat spouting a few choices words at owner Zeff while he tries to placate him. The waiter throws down the table napkin draped over their arm and storms out. Sanji doesn’t blame them, it takes a certain type of person to handle a busy night at the Baratie, which has been every night since Zeff started his own TV show.

Sanji relishes the crazy most of the time. Smiling at the customers is effortless as he delivers their food, and he only wishes he had more time to watch them enjoy it.

As he wanders around, making sure no customer is in need of anything, he glances towards the corner. There’s a two-seater table no-one ever wants to sit at, on account of it being next to the wildly swinging doors of the bathroom. Sanji only puts customers there if they've been rude, a time-out corner for people too important to treat waiting staff with decency.

Tonight though, he recognises the man who’s sat there, innocently twining his freckled hands like he's allowed to be there. He knows for a fact that the bastard didn't make a reservation, no one else he's ever met has the last name 'Portgas' and he didn’t see it in the reservation book. 

Ace gives him a dazzling grin, sheepish and yet handsome at the same time. He's at least dressed for a restaurant like the Baratie, more or less. Sanji wouldn't call jeans and a blazer/t-shirt combo 'black tie' exactly, but it's better than the shorts and t-shirts he usually wears. As Sanji walks up to the table he tries to look angry, but he’s more impressed than anything. 

Sanji flips the toothpick in his mouth over to one side, "So you’re the one who snuck in, Patty would've locked you in the freezer if he caught you."

Ace barks out a laugh and leans back in his chair, "I like a challenge, though it would’ve been easier on me if you picked up your phone once in a while."

Sanji at least has the good graces to look ashamed, he had meant to answer his voicemails weeks ago, but the weeks had somehow turned to months without him even realising it.

“Er… sorry, things have been pretty hectic. I'm doing a part time course at ABU and I'm working here, that’s… pretty much my life right now."

"You must have one day off, you need to take care of yourself man.”

Sanji sighs impatiently and shoves a menu into his hands.

"Ace, just... order something before I lose my job. If anyone says anything I’ll say you made a reservation and I forgot to write it down."

Ace flicks through the pages with a frown, then raises his eyebrows hopefully. "Grilled cheese?"

"Jesus christ… If you dine-and-dash on me, I will put my foot _ this _ far up your ass."

"Hey… I would _ never _, what do you take me for?"

Ace flutters his eyelashes innocently, while Sanji grabs the menu back with a groan. “One… grilled cheese, coming up.”

“You’re the _ best! _”

Back in the kitchen, he easily blocks out Patty and Carne's shouted orders and starts preparing the sandwich. There’s every type of cheese you could imagine in the fridge, but none have the right melting quality. He picks out a package of Mont D’Or and rummages around for more ideas. He has no idea why there’s a pack of American Singles amongst the wheels of Brie and the odd Stinking Bishop, but shrugs and pulls them out anyway. Zeff would crucify him for putting fine French cheese and cheap processed fare together, but it’s worth a try. 

When he brings Ace the sandwich, he dives on it and makes such an orgasmic moan that an elderly couple at a nearby table turn to stare at him.

“Oh man, Sanji… you’re a genius, you know that?” Ace says over a mouthful of cheesey goo. “Best ‘cheese I ever had.”  
The praise makes heat rush to his cheeks, despite his attempts to keep a neutral face on.

“I don’t get off work until midnight you know, you better make that last.”

“That’s okay, I don’t mind watching you work.” Ace says with a wink.

_ Fucking hell! _

He turns away before Ace can see how flustered the comment makes him, glad to be distracted by the elderly couple waving him over.

They ask him for a change of tables.

He tries to not let the man distract him as he goes back and forth between the kitchen and dining room. When he looks at Ace, he remembers his powerful body pressing him into wet sand, the clumsy drunk kisses and the tangle of coarse black hair under his fingers. He wonders how far they would've taken it… if the tide hadn't chosen that moment to come in and made them both shriek as cold water sloshed over their feet.

Thinking about that night distracts him so much he almost spills a bowl of soup down the neck of a businessman's shirt.

He stops in the middle of the restaurant with a plate of pot-au-feu in hand, when three men stride through the main doors.

The first is bedecked in red, his suit and dress shirt- even his sunglasses are tinted the colour of blood, with his hair combed over half his face in a ridiculous quiff. The second favours blue and gold, with a midnight suit and a ridiculously heavy gold watch strapped to his wrist. The last one swaggers in wearing a pure black suit and a green tie, with his slicked-back green hair that makes his thick neck and lumpy head look even more prominent.

The dish falls from Sanji's hand and shatters with a sound that breaks through the restaurant ambience like a gunshot. His throat clenches as he struggles to not vomit all over the floor. The blue bastard, Niji, snorts out an ugly laugh and looks down at the mess with amusement. 

“You gonna eat that, waiter boy? Because I’d love to watch you try!”

Sanij glances down regretfully at the shards of porcelain mixed with the once perfectly cooked French cuisine. 

“What are you doing here?” he says. The man in the red suit steps forward. “Nevermind that, we have a reservation, and we’re _ very hungry.” _Ichiji says. "We want a booth."

Sanji flips through the reservation book, someone else must have taken the call because sure enough, there it is; Vinsmoke at 8:20pm. He wants to tell them to get the fuck out, to go somewhere else and never come back, but what actually comes out of his mouth is; “Right this way… _ sirs.” _

He can’t refuse food to anyone, even if they spent a good portion of Sanji’s childhood beating the shit out of him.

The words are like torture as Ichiji as they come out of his mouth. “Can I take your drink orders?”

“Siddown sunshine.” The big green idiot, Yonji says as he bullies him into sitting at the far end of the booth. He sits beside Sanji to trap him in and puts his feet up on the table for good measure. Sanji is vaguely aware of Ace looking at him from the other side of the restaurant, with his eyebrows raised in concern. Sanji gives him a quick shake of his head.

_ Oh god Ace, please don’t get into it with them. _

“What the hell do you want?” Sanji says quietly.

Ichiji smirks and picks up a menu. “Father wants you to come home, now.”

“He’s not my father, and I don’t have to go anywhere with you.” 

"Really, is that what you think?" He leans over the table and presses his face close. "Because I don't recall anyone givin' you permission to leave.”

Sanji swallows back the bile hitting the back of his throat and grips his knees with white knuckles. Yonji grabs a bread roll and takes one bite before throwing it back into the basket. "You made father look like a fool that night you ran away."

“Yeah, Niji chuffs, “we haven’t heard the fucking end of it ever since. He says you’re to come home and start acting like a Vinsmoke, stop all this waiter crap.”

“Like _ hell _ I will.” Sanji growls. “This _ is _ my home!”

“If you refuse,” Niji continues, “we can always arrange to have you dragged back.”

Yonji makes some disgusting noises as he chews with his mouth open, “He’s picked out a good match for you. A senator’s daughter, and way hotter than a weedy lil’ prick like you deserves.”

“Wait, he expects me to get married?!”

Yonji tosses a picture over to him of a woman with pinkish auburn hair, busty and tall with eyes like an empress. She’s definitely gorgeous... in a horribly intimidating way.

“Sweet right?” Her name's Galette, the 18th daughter of Senator Charlotte."

"I… I guess…"

He can’t help but glance over at Ace again, ignoring the half a sandwich on his plate and staring at him with huge eyes. 

Niji smirks at him viciously. "What's the matter, not into girls? Cooking is a woman's job after all, can't say I'd be surprised if you turned out to be a...."

Sanji can guess the word he's about to say, he's had it spat at him as a replacement for his name many times, but he stops as Zeff comes hobbling over to them, tugging on his braided moustache and looking very, very angry. “Is there a problem here?”

“We’re having a conversation with our brother, get lost.” Yonji says.

Sanji can only look at his adopted father - the only _ real _ father he’s ever had - with a silent plea for help. In the presence of his brothers, he might as well be bound and gagged. Zeff folds his arms over his chest.

“My chef needs to get back to work.”

Yonji swings his boots off the table and gets to his feet, looking like he’s ready to hit the old man. “We don’t care! Get the fuck out of here.”

Zeff doesn't budge an inch. “Threaten a chef in his own restaurant and the only thing you’ll be eating will be sucked through a straw.”

Zeff nods at Sanji with his craggy face set and moustache bouncing.

“Take the rest of the night off Aubergine, I’ll deal with this.”

“Old man…”

“Don’t argue, just go.”

“Hey, we’re not done here!” Yonji snarls as Sanji barges past him and rushes towards the kitchen. He ignores Patty and Carne yelling for his assistance, even though they're twice as angry as before. He barely avoids the chefs carrying hot soup and flames erupting from pans and bursts through the back door and into the cool night air. He puts his back to the wall and stares out at the dark parking lot, breathing in shallow little gasps. 

Before he can catch his breath fully, the door swings open, and he expects Patty to come out and a torrent of abuse to start. Instead he hears a quiet, “Sanji?” 

He turns to see Ace, with so much concern in his expression that it’s painful.

To his horror, Sanji feels something wet on his cheeks, he hadn’t even noticed he’d been crying. 

“A-Ace, you…” He swipes at his face with his sleeves and doubles down on his effort to calm himself. “You better not have left food on your plate.”

Ace reaches into his blazer pocket and pulls out the other half of his sandwich, as if surprised to see it there. He wedges it into his mouth and resembles a chipmunk storing food for the winter as he chews.

"You know," Ace says, with crumbs falling from his mouth "I think you got all the looks in that family. The green guy would lose a battle of looks with a Fiat Multipla."

Sanji laughs shakily and spits out his toothpick, replacing it with a much-needed cigarette.

“I’m sorry-” he lets out the smoke in a hurried puff “-that you had to see that.”

Ace is silent as he finishes his sandwich and Sanji sighs as the nicotine hits.

“I need to get out of here.” Sanji says, once the initial wave of dizziness passes.

“I’m glad you said that.”

Ace walks over to his ridiculous red pickup truck and pops the passenger door open for him. Sanij can only raise his brow at the garish stickers of flames on the hood. “What the fuck is _ that?” _

“Her name is Petunia, and she is the prettiest.”

Ace lovingly pats the hood and smiles.

“Well, if you’re gonna drive me somewhere, there better be alcohol.”

“I got you covered buddy, don’t worry about it.”

Sanji crawls gratefully into the passenger seat and hums thoughtfully. 

"You cleared out all your taco wrappers just for me?"

Ace reaches over to shove him playfully and starts backing the car out of the parking lot. Sanji opens the window to let the curls of smoke out, and watches through the wing mirror as the Baratie falls away. He tries not to think about how his adopted father’s beloved restaurant no longer feels safe, and wonders about how the conversation he had with his shitty brothers went.

Ace clicks on the radio, and some indie guitars that sound like a broken ice cream truck jingle blares out. Normally he would be irritated, but the sounds and smells of engine grease and leather sink into him. It smells of warmth and comfort and home, and he wants to stay wrapped in it forever.

* * *

Ace stops the car at a lookout point above the city, usually a prime location for teenagers looking to make out with each other. All Blue City below stretches out for miles, thousands of lights winking on and off and the moving stream of lights of the highway moving like blood through a vein. The roar of the traffic is softened by the distance, and the occasional airplane hums overhead.

“You probably see this view all the time from your apartment, but I just love coming up here.” Ace says as he hops down from the driver’s door.

“It’s beautiful.” Sanji says huskily, and means it. The distance from the city feels like a weight off his chest. He turns around to see Ace pulling away the canvas covering the back of the truck. Underneath is a cooler full of sodas, some cushions and soft blankets, some battery-powered string lights… as well as an ashtray. 

“Surprise I guess?”

Sanji puts a hand to his forehead, swimming with the realisation. How could he be so _ stupid? _ “You wanted to take me on a date… didn’t you?”

Ace clambers up onto the truck and reaches into the cooler, presenting him with a bottle of wine.

“Maybe? I wanted to take you somewhere I knew you could smoke.”

Sanji climbs up alongside him and slumps into the pile of blankets. Exhaustion starts to hit him, and he can't stop thinking about the chaos the Baratie is probably in right now. He wonders if that table got their meal in the end, if anyone tried to pick out the shards of broken plate to salvage the food. He doesn't even notice that Ace has been staring at him. “Ah shit… I’m sorry Sanji. I don’t even know what to say."

Ace offers him a glass to pour him some wine, but Sanji rips the cork out with his teeth and drinks straight from the bottle. “God, I thought I had put this shit behind me… Judge always said I was a disgrace, that I ‘brought shame on our family line’. I thought he would be _ happy _ to never see me again.”

“I can see why you never wanted to talk about them.”

"I don't recall a single goddamn pleasant memory from those days. And now he wants me to get married to some woman I’ve never even met! Probably just wants to use me as some pawn to get in good with that senator.”

“Wait, what…?” Ace says, looking a little hurt. “Married?”

“Um, yeah… She’s called Galette.”  
“You’re not thinking about actually doing it, are you?”

Sanji looks away with a wince. “I’m pathetic… The moment I saw them walk through the door all these old insecurities came back like… Maybe I_ was _ a shitty son and I should’ve done better, maybe they’re the family I deserved all along and they know what’s best for me.”

“You once told me how Judge wrapped a fire-poker in a pillowcase and hit you with it, no-one deserves that!”

Sanji has been to more therapy sessions than he can count, but no matter what, he still believes deep down that everything Judge and his brothers said about him was true.

“I mean sure, if you say so.”

He puts the bottle to his lips again, but Ace knocks it away and a dribble of wine stains his collar pink.

“I _ do _say so! You got away Sanji, you don’t have to go back to them!”

“You don’t know what they’re like, they’ll never give up."

The wine in the bottle dips past the halfway point, but he keeps slugging it back, even though his tongue is dry and his head starts to feel like there's a pigeon roosting in it.

“We can help you okay? Me, Sabo and Loof. We’re gonna help you get through this.”

Sanji huffs, he was always jealous of the relationship Ace has with his brothers. He always felt like a spare part, or a half-starved, beat-up puppy Ace found one night and decided to bring back home on a whim. When he saw how they played and fought together as a family unit, despite not even being related by blood, he hated them. And he hated himself even more for thinking about them like that when they had shown him nothing but kindness.

Sanji had wanted that kind of family so badly. The only time his own family members even touched him was to punch him in the face or shove him over.

Sanji lets out all his breath in agitation and fumbles for his cigarettes, only to realise he smoked the last couple in the ride over.

“You should stay out of it.” Sanji says, suddenly so angry his voice comes out deathly quiet. “I once took a dishwashing job at some back alley burger joint, and then next thing I was seeing Judge’s car parking out front. That wasn’t the only time he had me tracked down either.”

"You won't be alone this time, we don’t give up either.”

“I’m_ telling _ you to stay out of it, Ace!” he snarls so furiously that Ace jerks back a little. He sees a flash of what Ace was like as a teenager as he narrows his eyes and squares his shoulders.

“Oh, you’re '_telling' _ me, huh? Nothing good can come out of this and you fucking well know it.”

“Shut the _ fuck _ up! Don’t sit there and tell me what to do when _ your _ brothers would _ die _ for you! And Luffy he-"

He stops suddenly, forcefully swallowing back the words that he was going to say.

_ He almost did. _

Sanji immediately knows he fucked up, he clamps his mouth shut but it's too late. The look Ace gives him is full of disappointment as he slips off the truck and goes to stand against the metal barrier at the edge of the lookout point.

If Sanji were less drunk, maybe he would have thought a little before bringing up such a painful memory, not just for Ace but for everyone involved. The screaming of a car’s wheels and the thumps of a body rolling over a car’s hood. Ace clinging to Sanji for dear life in the emergency room and sobbing like his heart was breaking.

"_He's gonna die-! He's gonna die and it's all my fault!" _

Sanji hiccups, he finished all of Ace’s wine without even thinking and the lookout point around him is starting to spin. He hops off the truck and staggers a little as he walks towards the barrier.

"I'm sorry." Sanji mumbles, glancing at Ace as he grips the barrier and stares out at the city lights.

“Yeah.” Ace says flatly.

"It... wasn't your fault."

"Okay."

Ace's dark eyes are dull as he stares into the distance. As the silence stretches on, all Sanji wants to do is vault the barrier and toss himself down the rocks. When Ace takes a deep breath to speak, Sanji can hardly stand to look at him.

"You have people who care about you Sanji, I wish you'd remember that once in a while."

Ace kicks the wine bottle over the edge of the cliff before he turns back to the truck.

The drive back to Sanji's apartment building is unbearably quiet - no more indie rock songs on the radio, just the quiet rumble of the car.

When they stop, Ace just stares ahead at the road and waits for him to get out, his hands are tense on the wheel and he can see the tendons sticking out in the dim light.

“Ace I…"

The look in his eyes is a mixture of that disappointment, but also a deep hurt - one Sanji knows he caused. He was just trying to _ help. _

"...see you."

* * *

_ "Did we lose them?" _

_ "I think so." _

_ Sanji stood with Sabo at the mouth of the underpass they had just sprinted down, and the streets were quiet. After the robbery they had just pulled and the subsequent fight, Sanji’s body was awash with adrenaline. They had never pulled anything this big, and the fact that they stole from a bunch of thieves meant that they didn’t even have to feel bad about it. _

_ Sabo grinned at him from under his hood as they waited for Ace and Luffy to catch up. Sanji grinned back, feeling confident and safe as wolves running in a pack. _

_ "We might have enough to afford our own apartment with this haul!" Sabo said. _

_ "Heh, congratulations." _

_ "What d'you mean ‘congratulations’? You're moving in with us, dumbass." _

_ Sanji had been too surprised to respond for a few moments, “How the hell are we gonna afford an apartment for four people?” _

_ “Well, if we have to share I’m rooming with you! Ace and Luffy can snore with each other all night.” Sabo said with a laugh, then he turned to bellow down the tunnel. "Hey guys, hurry up!” _

_ Ace had taken the lion’s share of the injuries in the fight, and he was bloody and bruised all over. He leaned heavily on Luffy's shoulder after some razor wire had torn him from thigh to ankle. Putting his full weight on it seemed to hurt him deeply. Sanji ran back, crossing half the underpass in a matter of moments. _

_ "You alright Ace?" Sanji said, lightly touching his shoulder. He raised his battered face, one of his eyes was so bruised it was almost shut completely. _

_ "Yeah, yeah... You guys go on ahead, I’ll be fine.” _

_ He waved at Sanji dismissively before pressing his forehead to his brother’s shoulder. He looked ready to collapse in a heap. _

_ “Want me to take him off you, Luffy?” _

_ “Nah! I’m good.” Luffy said with a beaming grin, his face was scratched and bruised too, but still full of the boundless energy of a fifteen-year-old. Luffy pulled Ace along, not seeming to feel the weight of the older boy, or the two backpacks full of loot slung across his shoulders. Sanji huffed and snapped at Luffy until he at convinced him to at least hand over Ace’s bag. He kept glancing back at Ace as he walked slowly in front of them, it was going to take them hours to get back to their hideout at this rate. _

_ Soon they heard the sounds of a car coming down the underpass in front of them. Sanji pressed himself into a maintenance doorway to let them past, but instead, the car stopped at the mouth of the tunnel. He was close enough to hear its engine rattling as it idled. _

_ Then the driver started to rev the engine. _

_ Afterwards, in the hospital, the three of them would quietly discuss how time seemed to slow at that moment, but for Sanji everything happened very fast. _

_ The car’s wheels screeched as the driver slammed on the accelerator and the engine snarled as it went barrelling straight towards Ace and Luffy. _

_ Sanji could only watch, too far away to even attempt to help them. The car drove past him with a thrum and it seemed certain that the car was going to hit them both, when at the last moment, Luffy threw Ace aside with everything he could. _

_ Sanji’s brain refused to process what had happened in front of him, until he saw a straw hat fly into the air and float slowly down. Luffy’s body hit the road a few moments later. _

_ The car weaved away with a trail of broken glass tinkling behind it. It stopped and turned at the end of the underpass, when sirens began wailing nearby. Whoever it was drove away with its back tyres spinning and squealing, away into the night. _

_ "NO, NO NO... _ ** _NO!_ ** _ ” _

_ Ace’s cries bounced off the concrete walls and echoed back to him sadly; ‘no, no no… no!’. _

_ Luffy lay still and face down, his leg was twisted at an unnatural angle and his backpack had spilled open. The ground was littered with the goods they had stolen, mobile phones and the odd games console all broken and covered in droplets of blood. Ace staggered to his feet and managed to stumble over to Luffy, only to collapse beside him. _

_ Sabo bolted over with a cry of "L-Luffy!" while Sanji could only stand numb and silent, with the raw certainty that Luffy was dead. So much blood covered the road that there was no way he wasn’t. The sirens were coming closer, and a beat cop in a blue uniform half-stepped out of his car. His radio was in his hand and he chomped on a large cigar as he spoke into it. _

_ "Yeah, Marineford Plaza, a kid got hit and I need the EMTs. Hurry up." _

_ “Out of the way.” the cop gruffed at them. Though he looked quite young, his hair was a shock of greyish-white. He picked up Luffy’s limp wrist and pressed his fingers into the soft part below his palm. “He’s still alive, but for god’s sake don’t try to move him until the paramedics get here.” _

_ Sanji knelt beside Ace to hold him as he burst into hysterical tears. Then Luffy opened his eyes and blinked at them. _

_ "Ace… you're okay?” he said, grinning weakly with bloody teeth. He lifted a hand and tried to reach out for him. “That’s great…” _

_ His hand fell back down before Ace or Sabo could hold it. _

_ "No-! Oh god, Luffy, _ ** _LUFFY!_ ** _ " _

_ It took all of Sanji’s strength to hold back Ace as he lurched forward to grab Luffy’s hand and desperately pull him into his arms. _

_ “Stay awake- don’t leave me! _ ** _ LUFFY!"_ **

_ Three weeks, two days. _

_ That's how long Luffy lay in a deep, deathlike sleep in hospital. _

_ At some point, the doctors had ordered the two brothers and Sanji to go home for 24 hours at the least, and the brothers had almost gotten themselves thrown out with the fuss they kicked up. Sanji and Ace found themselves in Dadan’s kitchen, trying to form some kind of meal after living on cafeteria food and shitty snacks from the vending machines. _

_ Ace stood pulling packages of sandwich fillings out of the fridge, while Sanji fumbled open a packet of instant coffee. There was a moment when Ace suddenly stopped what he was doing, eyes glazed over and hands slumping in the middle of buttering a piece of bread. When Sanji nudged him lightly, he jerked so fiercely that the plate, bread and knife went crashing to the floor. _  
_ “Ace, when was the last time you slept?” _ _  
_Ace shook his head and rubbed his fingers over black hooded eyes. “Three…”

_ “Three _days?!”

_ “I couldn’t… I kept dreaming that he was gone.” Tears filled eyes already red and puffy from nonstop crying, and Ace’s face collapsed in despair. "Everything hurts so much…" Sanji pulled him into a hug and stroked his shoulder. _

_ "I know... Leave it to me, okay?" _

_ Sanji directed him to the couch to lay down, and he was asleep long before Sanji finished cleaning up the broken plate. _

_ Sanji had been running away his whole life. Only in the wake of utter devastation, with Ace stone-cold unconscious did he find the courage, to kneel and kiss his forehead, to wind fingers through his hair and tell him... Even though there was no chance he would hear the words; _

_ "I love you, Ace." _

* * *

_ Galette. What kind of a stupid fucking name is that? _Ace thinks bitterly as he lays on his couch. There’s a lot wrong with what Sanji told him, but the part that sticks out is the thought of him getting married to some stuck-up socialite and pretending to be happy for the rest of his life. And for what, the approval of a father who he hates?

Ace makes an irritated noise to himself and strokes the fat rat in his hands, in an attempt to calm himself down. He took Flip-Flop out of his cage to cuddle, but the rat is more interested in scampering around the couch looking for things to bite. He chose to get out Chubs instead, less inclined towards moving and nice to pet while he lays around brainless and moping on the couch. Flip-Flop is nibbling happily on a pair of crocs when Sabo and Luffy come through the door. Their arms are full of shopping bags and Luffy has a stick of beef jerky wedged in his mouth.

"You couldn't wait 10 minutes until we got home?" Sabo says.

"Mrrfff!"

"Right, look at who I'm talkin' to here…" Sabo dumps his bags on the kitchen counter and turns to Ace with a grin, “Hey! How’d your date go?"

Ace sinks further into the couch and groans.

“Oh… that bad huh? I told you, you should’ve worn a tie.”

“It was not about the tie! Sanji… Sanji’s brothers showed up at the Baratie.”

The pink scar across Sabo’s left eye wrinkles as he frowns.

"His family... the Vinsmokes?"

Luffy scowls and hisses like a cat with its tail stepped on. "_Gross _, don't say that name!" Flip-Flop spots Luffy and abandons the crocs, too fast for anyone to catch him as he sinks his teeth into the foam of Luffy’s sandals. “AW C’MON, I JUST BOUGHT THESE!”

Luffy leans down to pick the rat up and his sandal comes with it, still munching away even with Luffy’s hand around his body.

Sabo perches himself on a chair and ruffles Ace's hair, "You want to talk about it champ?"

Ace pats the top of Chubs’ head and the fat rat looks up at him with black eyes. There’s something wrong when even a rat’s adorable face can’t make him smile.

"You should’ve seen Sanji, he was… terrified. These guys are total bullies. I haven’t seen him cry since-”  
“_What?” _ Luffy stares at him, frozen with Flip-Flop wriggling in his hand. “They made him _ cry?” _He and Sabo exchange a glance, both their expressions are thunderously dark.

“Luffy…”

“No, I mean it!” Luffy waves the rat around as he gestures wildly, “Sanji’s been through enough without those _ dick-heads _ coming back and making trouble for him!”

Ace swipes his hand through his hair, already slightly regretting bringing it up.

“I'm going to kick their asses!" Luffy says.

"Guys, we're not teenagers anymore." Ace says, "Plus they're rich, they might… I don’t know- put a hit out on us or something.”

Sabo snorts and puts his hands behind his head.  
“That doesn’t scare me.”

“Well it scares _ me! _I’m not gonna put you two in danger.”

He and Sabo look instinctively towards Luffy, at the bend in the bone below his knee from where he broke it. A Comminuted Fracture the doctors had called it. He had spent months couch-bound and losing his mind from boredom while it healed.

With Luffy standing in front of him now, it almost seems like a vaguely remembered nightmare. But it still puts the shits up him whenever he looks at his knee or the ragged X-shaped scar on his chest from where the impact had torn him up. Luffy frowns at them and tilts his head. "Will you two stop looking at me like that?"

Ace puts Chubs to one side and stands up, to pull his brother into a fierce hug. "I love you, you dipshit." 

"I know! Jeez… You need to stop worrying so much!”

Luffy starts wriggling uncomfortably and jabbing his finger into his shoulder blades to make him let go.

"No, never, because it's my job to worry".

"Mine too." Sabo adds with a wry smile.

As Ace rounds up the two rats to put them away, Luffy sidles over with a mischievous smile.

"So… how many brothers does he have again?"

Ace shoots him a warning glare as he shoves Chubs' fat ass back into his cage.

"Three, that I saw anyway."

"Perfect, one for each of us!"

"Luffy, _ no!" _

"If we get rid of them, you and Sanjj can totally be gay together! You know you want to beat them up."

"Dumbass has a point," Sabo says, "it sounds like they totally cock-blocked you."

_ Shouldn't have told them about the date in the first place, damn it. _

"Okay first of all," Ace snaps the cage door shut and points a finger at Luffy, "no-one is beating _ anyone _ up until we know what we're getting into this time. We are adults, and we are good, reasonable people."

Luffy folds his arms and nods seriously, while Sabo smirks.

"That being _ said…" _Ace continues, finding an evil smile pulling at the corners of his mouth, "let's think up some ways we can make sure Sanji's brothers never fuck with him again."


	2. ...You'll never see the walls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sanji is ‘invited’ back to Vinsmoke Manor for a party and to meet his bride. Terrible memories resurface and old wounds re-open but hey, at least there's cake... and Ace, Sabo and Luffy are party-crashing experts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No beta reader again, fuck punctuation I am… so angry and tired at the Vinsmokes and I just want Sanji to have a nice bubblebath. This has gone from an acesan fic to something of a Sanji character study with acesan in it. And I’m sorry but this chapter is just pure torture, there’s some pretty serious subject matter, but I promise there’s light at the end of the tunnel (AND THE LIGHT ISN’T A CAR COMING DOWN AN UNDERPASS FSSFHG).  
Content warnings for domestic abuse and mentions of hard drugs.  
Enjoy!?

_ "He was gonna kill me." Sanji sobbed, "He _ wanted _ to kill me." _

_ Reiju made some token effort to tend to his wounds, she was the only one who bothered to check if he was okay, after he lay in bed for an entire day wearing the same blood-soaked sweater. Whenever Judge used physical punishment, he usually did it with his fists, maybe a kick thrown in here and there for variety. But Sanji had feared for his life when he picked up the fire poker instead, and hit him until he lay completely limp and still on the floor of his study. _

_ It wasn't his fucking fault. His brothers had put something in his drink at the party, he was sure of it. It would explain the looks on his brother’s faces, the shitty smirks on their faces and the barely held back laughter as he took a sip from his glass. _

_ Trying to explain to Judge that he hadn't chosen to take drugs and ruin his fundraiser had been useless of course. _

_ "You should get out of here, Sanji" Reiju said quietly, as she pressed stinging antiseptic to the gash on his ribs, "father says he's going to send you away to the strictest boarding school he could find." _

_ "But…” _

_ "But _ what?!” _ Reiju said incredulously “There's nothing left for you here!" _

_ "Where will I go?" he said quietly. _

_ "Get to the city, ask for a job - any job! - find a hostel and get help. You're still young, maybe someone will adopt you one day!" _

_ "Reiju I'm scared... You'll come with me right? You’re nearly eighteen, you don’t have to stay either...” _

_ Even as he stared at his older sister with tears spilling down his face, silently begging her, he knew she wouldn't. _

_ "I can't." she said stiffly. _

_ "Reiju please…" _

_ She slapped him, hard across the face. _

_ "I just _ can't!_ Now stop crying and pull yourself together!" _

_ That night he had given up ever trying to understand his sister. _

_ He barely packed anything, a few changes of clothes, what allowance he had that hadn't been docked or stolen by one of his brothers, a gold locket his mother had given him… He didn't have the time or space in his backpack to take any other sentimental things _

_ The manor was dark and silent as he limped carefully over the old floorboards, desperately hoping none of them would creak and wake his brothers up… or the monster that lurked in the bedroom down the hall. _

_ The heavy front doors were locked and bolted, just as he was worried they would be, as was the small back door in the kitchen. Vinsmoke Manor might as well have been a prison. _

_ Sanji made a frustrated whine as he tried every key on the hook, none of them worked when he tried them in the lock. _

_ "Going somewhere?" _

_ The voice made him jump and drop the set of keys with a heavy clatter. _

_The light behind Ichiji threw his shadow long across the floor from where he leaned in the kitchen doorway. "I heard you talking to Reiju, aren't you excited to go to boarding school?" _

_ Sanji swallowed and stood his ground. "Where's the key?” _

_ Ichiji twirled the key chain on his finger and gave him a grin that had absolutely no humour in it. "Come take it, if you want." _

_ Sanji’s shoulders rose and fell as he stared at his older brother. He knew he couldn’t take it off him by force. One decent punch would lay him out on the floor, in too much pain to do anything as Ichiji went to wake Judge up. _

_ Sanji's eye slid towards the kitchen counter, where a lot of large knives were stored in a wooden block. _

_ “Give it, Ichiji!” he said darkly. He felt a guilty pang at what he was thinking, knives were tools for cooking, not weapons. _

_ Even with the light behind him, Sanji could see the malicious glint in Ichiji's eyes. _

_ "No, think I'll go wake dad up.” he said, half-turning in the doorway, “Maybe he'll finish the job and bury you next to mom." _

_ The guilt vanished in a rush of anger, and Sanji grabbed for one of the knives with such a ferocious yank that the block tipped over. The knives clattered onto the floor as he pointed the blade in Ichiji’s face. _

_ “I _ mean _ it!” _

_ His brother burst out laughing. “Put that down, you don’t have the guts.” _

_ Sanji cried out as Ichiji grabbed his wrist and slammed it hard into the counter. The knife flew out of his hand and span away, then Ichiji slammed his fist into Sanji’s ribs, right on top of a bruise Judge had made the night before. _

_ Ichiji knocked his legs out from under him and sat on his back. Tears sprang into Sanji's eyes as Ichiji grabbed a fistful of his hair and yanked his head back."You're in so much trouble,” he said gleefully, “they're gonna lock you up in a mental home for this. I'm gonna tell everyone you tried to kill me." _

_ Sanji lunged out for one of the fallen knives and slashed out blindly. His brother yelled and the weight lifted enough for Sanji to squirm out from underneath him. _

_ A gash opened up near Ichiji’s neck, a little lower and he might have hit an artery. _

_ Still, Ichiji raised his fist again. “You crazy little _ prick!_"_

_ Sanji slashed out again, and again, even as his brother raised his hands to defend himself. _

_ "Just… let me go, or I'll kill you!" Sanji sobbed as he groped on the floor for the key. He had never hurt any of his brothers. Ichiji stared dumbfounded at the deep gashes in his palms that dribbled blood onto the floor. Sanji held onto the knife as he fumbled the key into the door, thinking at any moment his brother would pull him back and make him pay for cutting up his hands. _

_ If there was one thing Sanji was good at besides cooking and being the family disappointment, it was running. _

_ He dashed across the lawns and trimmed hedgerows, past the huge tiered fountain that sat in front of Vinsmoke Manor. The movements aggravated every single one of his injuries, making it feel like stumbling through a nightmare. Ichiji’s blood was still warm and sticky on his hands, though as it dried it helped him get a grip on the high iron bars that topped the fence. He had to leap to grip the topmost set of bars and haul himself up. He tore his jeans on the spiked top of the fence and fell screaming the six feet down the other side. _

_ As he picked himself up, wheezing and in so much agony he thought he would die from it, he didn’t think he would be able to run anymore if his life depended on it. Then, through the bars, he saw the front doors of the manor swinging open and Judge’s towering figure stride out. Then it turned out he could run after all. _

_ He walked for hours down a lonely stretch of highway towards All Blue City, thumb outstretched to passing cars. The sky lightened from the black of midnight to a chalky pre-dawn blue before anyone stopped to pick him up. _

_ He wondered what the truck driver must think of him, the malnourished teen sitting in his cab with blood on his clothes and bruises all over his face. He didn’t say anything as he dropped Sanji off at the outskirts, and none of the few people he saw raised an eyebrow as he stumbled down the streets looking for a safe enough place to hide and rest. He found a doorway of an abandoned shop and slumped into it gratefully to sleep, only to be woken up not long after by a voice. _

_ "Hey kid, you can't sleep here." _

_ Sanji looked up blearily at the cop. He waited for an explanation of _ why _ he wasn't allowed to sleep in a doorway no-one was using, or questions about what a fourteen year old was doing sleeping on the street in the first place, but all that came was a curt, "Move along now.". _

_ Sanji continued his slow limp down the unfamiliar streets of the city, the streets yawning wide in front of him and skyscrapers closing in around his head. He had finally gotten away, and yet he still felt completely trapped._

* * *

When Zeff hobbles into the Baratie kitchen at first light, Sanji is already there, poring over menus and arranging everything in the cupboards. He's rearranged the dry goods at least three times and wrapped all the silverware into napkins. Now he sits hunched over the day’s menu, supposedly thinking about what dishes to write into it, but all he can think of is what Ace said to him the night before. He rubs the sleep from his eyes and sighs as Zeff walks over. Zeff casts his stormy blue eyes over him and smiles, with a hint of sympathy behind his craggy features.

“You okay? Ma petit aubergine?”

“Casse-toi!” Sanji snaps, as Zeff reaches over to ruffle his hair. Zeff lets out a dusty laugh as Sanji swats his hand away. “I’m fine… Ace drove me home last night."

"Ace?” Zeff raises a knowing eyebrow and the corner of his mouth lifts slightly, “Is he… someone I should know about?”

Even the most gentle questioning makes Sanji want to crawl inside one of the industrial-sized ovens and switch it on. He can't tell him about Ace, not remembering the torrents of abuse Judge and his brothers had thrown at him just for expressing an interest in cooking and fashion. 

"...We're just friends."

"Shame, that boy would make someone a great husband."

Sanji winces and gets up, rapidly trying to think of something else in the kitchen he can pretend to organize. Telling Zeff about Judge’s plans for him would just make the old man worry.

"Don't let them get to you kid, I know their type. All they're good for is lounging on yachts and pretending they're tougher than they actually are." Zeff says with a wink, “I’ve told Patty and Carne they’re free to beat on them if they come back.”

"Thanks… old fart."

Zeff shuffles off with his prosthetic leg clicking on the tiles. He wonders about that, his brothers were certainly tough when they were kids, and they definitely scared the shit out of him now.

It's mid morning when someone opens the back door and heels click on the tiles towards him. He doesn't know anyone who wears heels, not any of the chefs anyway. Not unless Patty is trying something new.

The woman in pink stops his heart briefly, not because he’s happy to see her, but because of how startlingly she resembles their mother. She and Sanji inherited their mother’s eyes, while their brothers got Judge’s cruel green-grey ones. Reiju gives him a smile that's a little fond, a little apologetic, but still with something else he’s never been quite able to read.

He turns back to what he was doing, wondering what it's like to see your family members and feel something other than dread or pain.

"I suppose it's too late to say sorry?" Reiju says.

"Not too late to say it, but you have to mean it first."

Reiju flips her candy-pink hair and perches herself on the steel kitchen counter top. She gives a tiny resigned sigh. “You wouldn't believe me either way." 

"Why are you here, did Judge tell you to come and talk me into coming back?"

"He did but... I don't care about that. I just wanted to see how you were doing."

"I have nothing to say to you."

Sanji frowns into one of the cabinets where pots and pans are stored neatly, wishing at least something were out of place so he would have something to do, until her eyes in his back become more than he can stand.

"Why does he want me to come back?"

“For his image, plain and simple. You’ve been the focus of a lot of _ scandalous _ gossip over the years. It would look good for him if there were a heartwarming story about his estranged son reuniting and re-joining the family.”

“I’m sure. And he continues to have no regard for what _ I _want.”

“Of course, this isn't about you whatsoever."  
That’s one thing Sanji always liked about his sister - however reluctantly - she never beat around the bush with these things, or gave him any false sympathy. 

“If it’s money he thinks he can lure me back with, he’s a few years too late. I haven’t been destitute for a long time now.”  
“Well yes, that's obvious." She says, looking over his designer suit, the sleeves on his blue striped shirt rolled up while he works. 

"I'm… really glad you're alright. I was a little worried something might've happened to you."

Sanji huffs.

"I’m fine.” _ No thanks to any of you. _

He bites back the comment, he doesn’t know whether to be grateful to her or not for knocking some sense into him. He should have left long before things got as bad as they did.

Reiju slips off the counter and her heels clomp on the tiles as she steps towards him.

"I know you hate me Sanji, and I don’t blame you but… things weren't so great for me either, I was so busy protecting myself that I let you suffer. And the worst part is… I would do it again."

The look of regret on her face is real.

“Yeah, I get it.”

He grabs a rag from the sink and scrubs at a non-existent stain on the counter. When Yonji had been born a couple years after Sanji, he had almost hoped that he would have one other sibling who would be on his side, that hope was quickly snuffed out when Yonji grew up to be bigger than any of them and almost as mean as Ichiji.

“We’re coming to pick you up later tonight for the party, whether you like it or not, I suppose. I thought I’d warn you in case you want to make yourself scarce.”

Sanji huffs out a laugh, “I got a restraining order a few years ago, you know, against the three of them and Judge, not that it makes much difference to him.”

“I’m sure it would strike fear into his heart, if he had one.”

Reiju attempts to pat his shoulder, the most loving gesture a Vinsmoke is probably capable of, but he quickly turns away before she can touch him.

“I'm a little jealous of you, I wish I could get away like you did."

"Then why don't you?"

She smiles and shrugs, “Hell if I know, some misguided sense of loyalty perhaps? I mean, we’re all pretty broken because of him.”  
Reiju pauses at the door and casts a bright blue eye back his way.

“You better take control of your life, little brother, or someone’s going to do it for you.”

_ I thought I had already. _He thinks morosely, before getting back to work.

* * *

He picks the finest suit he owns, a black-and-gray striped waistcoat over a white shirt, with a slender silk tie and a gray jacket. He chooses some matching pinstripe pants and shoes polished to a mirror shine. He makes sure to clean the gold and platinum ring Zeff gave him for his 21st birthday, as well as the gold-plated lighter shaped like a woman hugging her knees. A couple of things to remind him who his real father is.

The buzzer makes him jump out of his skin, and he rushes out the door before Zeff can ask any questions.

A limo is waiting outside and Ichiji stands next to it with his arms folded. They spend a few moments staring at each other, Sanji can feel the heat from his glare, even from under his black shades.

"Do I have to be nervous of you, haven't brought a knife this time, right?" he says cooly.

When he tries to grab Sanji's shoulder to shove him into the car, he savagely bats his hand away.

"Don't touch me, don't _ ever _ fucking touch me."

When Ichiji points to the open door, he can just about see the faint white scars that decorate his palms. “Just get in the car…” 

Sanji gives him one more warning glare, hearing a small mutter of ‘_psycho _’ thrown at his back as he clambers into the car. He sits on the bench as far away from Niji and Yonji as he can, next to Reiju on the leather bench.

"Want a drink?" she says, offering him a cut-crystal decanter of whiskey. He has no idea how he's going to make it through tonight sober, but the idea of taking a drink from any of them makes him shudder.

"No thanks." He lights a cigarette and Reiju pours herself a drink as the car starts moving.

"Still sore about the fundraiser huh?" Niji says, barely holding back a smirk. "You never did have much of a sense of humour."

"It wasn't funny." Sanji says, biting off each word.

"Oh it was _ hilarious_! When you got high as shit and started freaking out, saying there were moths under your skin…"

Yonji barks with laughter and nudges Ichiji, "Then you locked yourself in the bathroom and dad had to have the door broken down."

Sanji puffs smoke at them and folds his arms.

"Then we found you huddled in the corner and-” Niji giggles helplessly with tears in his eyes. “You’d pissed your fucking pants!"

His brothers roar with laughter and he feels his cheeks burning. When the drugs kicked in that night, he hadn’t known what was happening. He thought that the bullying had finally caused him to lose his goddamn mind. He wants nothing more than to kick the shit out of the three of them, and probably would try if they weren’t confined to the car. He taps the ash from his cigarette onto the plush carpet at his feet, and it’s a long time before the brothers stop laughing.

"Good old harmless brotherly pranks huh?" Reiju says, with an apologetic smile.

"Are we there yet?" Sanji mutters.

* * *

Vinsmoke Manor looms out of the darkness as Sanji steps out of the limo, its many windows glowing with yellow light. When he looks back over the neatly cut lawns and tiered fountain, he can just about make out the spot where he had desperately escaped over the wrought-iron fence so many years ago. 

"No smoking inside."

Ichiji grabs the cigarette out of his mouth and stomps it out. "Father wants to see you straight away, so shift it!"

Sanji almost reaches up to slap him, but Yonji glares at him from over his shoulder, making him think better of it. 

They march him past the marble staircase and glittering chandeliers, past the terrible oil painting Judge had commissioned of himself posed like a goddamn king. From the hall he can hear the sounds of the party already in full swing.

Ichiji opens the double doors to the study, and silently orders Sanji inside. As he steps into the dim room, the mounted head of a bighorn sheep greets him on his right, staring into nothing with its glassy yellow eyes. Very faintly, in the white fur, he can see some ancient drops of dried blood. The room is packed full of taxidermied animals; mounted deer heads and antlers, roaring lions from expensive hunting trips to Africa. They were already tasteless, but staring at them while getting beaten left a permanent association in his mind.

He feels sick and dizzy as he looks over at the man standing in front of the fire, his back to them as he swills a tumbler of whiskey. His mane of greying blonde hair sweeps down over his shoulders and the buttons of his tuxedo strain against his bulging chest. Despite his age, he could probably still stomp Sanji into the ground with little effort. 

He turns to Sanji and looks him up and down, with the same unimpressed scowl his face rarely ever shifted out of. "The boys told me you were a waiter, I didn't know you were going to dress like one too."

"Sous-chef." Sanji says coldly.

"It's all the same to me. No son of mine belongs in the service industry.” Judge sits down in the high-backed armchair in front of the fire and folds his leg over his knee. "Here are my terms; you're going to quit your job. You’re going to sever your ties with that ridiculous TV chef and marry the woman I picked for you.” Sanji opens his mouth and Judge flicks up his palm to silence him.

"If anyone asks - and they will - you've been in and out of rehab for eight years."

"Rehab…?”

"Yeah, heroin.” Ichiji cuts in. “And coke, just anything you can inject or snort - you’ve done it"

"And you were high when you attacked Ichiji." Yonji adds, "But we're not going to press charges because he forgave you."

"We also told them you're a sex addict." Niji says with a giggle.

“And that’s supposed to impress this woman, that I'm a druggie, sex-addicted lunatic?” Sanji says bitterly. The sex thing might be true as he thinks about it, one night stands are a pretty easy way to drown out things he'd rather not think about, but he hasn't touched any sort of drug since the fundraiser incident.

“You’re lucky she’s willing to give you a chance." Judge says gruffly. "Senator Charlotte is very insistent on this match, and my boys are already promised to other girls.”  
He gestures lazily to his sons.

“Ichiji is marrying a duchess, Yonji - a gold-medal winning Olympic gymnast, and Niji to a reality TV star.”

Niji grins and mouths the word ‘HUGE’, making a crude grabbing gesture.

“Well I’m sorry to disappoint you again _ Judge,_" Sanji growls, "because I only came here to tell you to leave me the fuck alone. I’d rather chew on broken glass than do anything you say.”

His amazement that he finally stood up to the man quickly dribbles away as Judge stands back up. He puts his glass down on a table with a sharp knock and eyes Sanji quietly.

“You almost ruined me, Sanji.” he says quietly, “It took me eight years to recover from the damage you caused, and people are _still _ asking questions.” He steps over and puts his face close to Sanji’s, puffing breath in his face that stinks of whiskey.

“Let me make one thing perfectly clear; You are not my son. But, I am forced to take you back into my family, only because I cannot reverse the clock and have you _aborted. _Oh you can refuse, but know that I can go to that restaurant and have it torn apart brick-by-brick. I can ruin the careers of everyone you know, I could even arrange for that old chef to have an _accident.”_

Sanji tries to look Judge in the eye, to think of a counter he can spit back at him, but ends up taking the abuse the same way he always did; with bowed head and slumped shoulders, staring hard at Judge’s shoes and tears pricking the backs of his eyes.  
“Now, get out there and apologize for your mistakes.”

* * *

Judge is all smiles as he walks into the crowded ballroom with his four children following him. Sanji hangs back, wondering how the man can so easily pretend to have a soul. He starts conversations as easily as any other person, pats Ichiji on the back and takes Reiju’s arm like father of the goddamn year.

“Sanji, come here!” Judge calls him like he would a dog, gesturing to the woman he recognizes from the photo Ichiji showed him. She wears a long red dress that trails majestically over one thigh and a feathered coat over her shoulders. Sanji can’t decide if she’s scary-gorgeous, or just plain scary as she glowers down at him. He puts on a polite smile and extends his hand.

“Um, nice to meet you, my name is San-”

“Yes," Galette says, ignoring his hand and folding her arms over her chest. “I know who you are.” She flicks her golden-hazel eyes distastefully over him and her red lips turn down in a scowl. He’s forced to retract his hand, and reflexively reaches up to adjust his tie instead.

Galette turns to Judge with a scowl.

“I was expecting a man, not this little boy!”

“Well, Sanji may be young but he’s a very… experienced chef. Maybe he will impress you yet!” Judge says, with a glare as he turns to leave that says ‘_and you better’. _

“Are you enjoying the party?” Sanji asks her, wincing at how pathetic it sounds.

“I guess.” she walks towards the spread of buffet food set on long tables in the middle of the room. “The food is atrocious, I don’t know who made these desserts, but they should be shot.”

Sanji tastes a pot of sad, half-collapsed vanilla soufflé and silently agrees. Judge no doubt picked the catering company that favoured looks over taste.

“Ah, the technique with soufflé is-”  
“I know.” she says. “Dessert making has been in my family for generations.”

“Maybe you could teach me!” he says brightly. “I’ve always had a bit of a gap in my knowledge with desserts, dacquoise especially. Baking is such a complex art, one wrong move and you have to start again you know?"

Galette seems to be barely listening as she listlessly pulls a few pastries from a croquembouche onto a plate.

“Do you always talk this much? I half expected you to be running to the bathroom for a bump every few minutes.”

“I…”

“Please go ahead, I could use one myself after being humiliated all night.” 

She strides away to join a group of women who could be her sisters, and a towering woman in a pink dress he assumes to be Senator Charlotte. She gives him a cutthroat smile over a plate stacked high with cakes. Judge is probably expecting him to go and introduce himself, but the thought of it makes him stride quickly away, hunting for a side door to have a smoke. Or more like a lot of smokes.

Judge stops him before he can make it to the patio doors by waving him over to a platform at the back of the hall. He limps over slowly as Judge taps on his glass of champagne to quiet the room. “Everyone, I have an announcement to make.” he says into a microphone, “As most of you know, my son Sanji and I have not had the best relationship. I was not always the easiest parent to get along with, and Sanji’s many mental issues caused a rift between us.”

A murmur goes through the crowd.

Judge slaps an enormous hand over Sanji’s shoulder and he _flinches, _freezing into a statue as his fingers dig into him. Very soon, he's willing himself to not have an anxiety attack in front of a room full of strangers, even while a few choice memories flash before his eyes.

"Sanji has always been troubled, it's true, and his addiction to drugs has been a great challenge for all of us."

"But we have chosen to forgive him, he has worked hard in rehab and we hope that you will too."

The crowd applauds politely and a few heads nod in solemn approval.

Judge raises his heavy brows to say ‘well?’, the room is silent as they wait for him.

He’s still frozen as Judge refuses to take his hand away from his shoulder, his nails dig in even more and Sanji feels himself trying to forcefully disconnect his mind from his body in an attempt to get away.

_ Oh my god, he nearly killed me. _

“Say something, dumbass!” Yonji hisses in his ear. Judge only takes his hand off his shoulder when he moves to shove the microphone stand closer to his face.

“Um, hello.” Sanji says, surprised he still has a voice. “I would like to… to thank my father for giving me another chance. I wouldn’t be here today without all the love and support he’s given me.”

His teeth grind together as he forces out a smile. “And also my brothers for finding me and bringing me back home.”

Judge gives him the tiniest nod of approval. Sanji smiles tightly back at him and thinks, _ Go ahead and nod you goddamn monster, I only have one father, and it certainly isn’t _ you_. _

* * *

“Where the _ hell _ did you get a top hat?'

“Stole it on the way in, you think it suits me?"

Sabo tilts the ridiculous headwear and looks down his nose at Ace with the air of a smug aristocrat.

"You look like an 18th century chimney sweep, now get out of the way!"

Ace shoves Sabo away from the bathroom mirror to focus on combing down Luffy’s hair, even with a generous application of gel, his coarse black locks keep springing back up in all directions.

"Screw it, You're as presentable as you're ever going to get." He pulls the comb through his own unruly waves of hair, then tosses it aside.

"Can we go look for Sanji now?" Luffy whines.

"I guess. Just… try not to talk to anyone."

"Okay!"

Luffy dashes out of the bathroom and makes a beeline for the buffet table. The first time Ace ever seen Luffy in a tuxedo and he’s no doubt going to get it covered in food. Ace is also wearing a tux, but Sabo decided to outdo the both of them with a white cravat and a long black tailcoat. 

“Okay, I know you didn’t have that when we walked in.” Ace says, scowling at the cane Sabo is holding, which is topped with a silver handle set with a very large topaz.

“Hey, one thing I’ve learned about rich people is they don’t take very good care of their stuff.” Sabo says with a chuckle. “They won’t miss it.”

Ace elbows him in the ribs as he walks pompously into the main hall with his cane swinging and his ass wiggling. “Don’t draw any attention to us! I’ve already got enough to worry about with Captain Eats-A-Lot over there.”

“_Relax _! I grew up with rich chumps for a while, I know what I’m doing. Go look for your boyfriend already.”

Ace rolls his eyes as Sabo peels off to join a group of bejewelled older women. He tips his ridiculous hat at them and even gives a bow before effortlessly joining their conversation.

As Ace wanders the edges of the party, he wonders if his brothers might be right to relax, it _ had _been awfully easy to get in. A quick internet search had brought up news about some fancy party the Vinsmokes were holding, and it hadn't taken them long to find the address. Who needed an invite when the gates were just begging to be climbed? There wasn't even much in the way of security.

He catches sight of Sanji’s blue-haired shitty brother talking with the green one, Ace pretends to examine an oil painting as he listens in on them. Blue boy’s loud drawling voice is easy to hear even over the crowd.

“Yeah dad just bought me a new Maserati, I’m gonna pick it up tomorrow.”

“Didn’t he just buy you a BMW?”

Blue-boy snorts and slurps his champagne.

“BMWs are for chumps, they’re not even that much of a luxury these days. Don’t tell dad but I _ might _ have wrecked it on purpose, I’ve had my eye on that GranTurismo for months.

Ace rolls his eyes as they drone on about car dealerships. He wouldn’t trade Petunia for the fastest sports car in the world. Though he makes a mental note of the dealership, could be useful for their revenge scheme.

He jumps when he turns to find Luffy at his side, shoving a cupcake into his face.

“These cupcakes _suck!” _he says with his mouth full “Try it!”

“I don’t want a-” Ace wipes the icing from his nose and reluctantly takes a bite. The claggy icing immediately sticks to his palate and the back of his throat, sickly sweet and tasting like plastic, “-oh, you’re right, they _ do _suck!”

Ace moves over to a table with champagne glasses arranged in a tower and snatches a glass just to wash the taste out.

“They’re supposed to be rich, they can’t even afford buttercream?!” Luffy says. “These people are _ animals _!” He shoves the rest of the cupcake in his mouth regardless, making a face like Ace tried to get him to swallow medicine.

He sprays crumbs all over Ace’s front as he says “Where’s Sabo?” 

“Over there.” Ace points with his chin to the other side of the hall where Sabo has drawn a large crowd, leaning on his cane and letting out a booming fake laugh,

“He looks right at home.” Luffy says cheerfully. “Didja find Sanji?”

Ace glares back into the crowd.

“No, but I found a couple of his brothers. Over there, the ones with the stupid dyed hair.”  
They watch as the blue one reaches over and pinches a waitresses’ ass as she walks by. 

“Ohhh they gonna _ die! _” Luffy slams his fist into his palm with a heavy smack. “Let me at them.”

“Not yet.” Ace grabs the collar of Luffy’s tuxedo to hold him in place as he snarls and wriggle out of his grip.

“What are we even doing here if we’re not gonna do something? This party _ sucks_!”

“I want to talk to Sanji first, and get some information about these tools. That’s what Sabo’s doing right now… At least I hope it is.”

He glances over at his brother again, who pulls a ridiculously exaggerated snooty face and winks at him. Luffy groans in disgust and goes back to the buffet table, trying one of every dish and grimacing at most of them. 

Ace sticks with him, making sure he doesn’t knock over the tiered cake or try to tear into the salmon with his bare hands. Then he spots Sanji on the veranda outside, burning down cigarettes like he’s trying to set a new world record.

Ace’s heart aches at how miserable he looks, with the shadows around his eyes and the lost expression on his face. Luffy spots him at the same moment and hops up and down. “Ooh ooh! Over there! Go admit your undying love or whatever!” 

“Shut up! Go eat some more shitty cupcakes.”

Ace steps onto the veranda and shuts the door behind him, drowning out the noises of the party. “Hey stranger.”

Sanji turns around and immediately chokes on his lungful of smoke. “What the _ fuck _ are you doing here?! Judge will kill you!” he says, with his eyes streaming from the coughing fit.  
“We’re gathering intel.”

“Gathering intel for _ what_!?"

The door bangs open and Luffy runs out, gulping a mouthful of food down like a pelican. “SANJI! Don’t get married!”

“I didn’t come here to get married, dumbass!” Sanji thumps him on the head with his fist and pushes him away when he tries to cling around his waist. “I’m only twenty-two!”

“Then why’d you come here? You _ hate _ your family!"

Sanji locks eyes briefly with Ace, and he remembers the last conversation they had,

_ Maybe I was a shitty son and I should’ve done better, maybe they’re the family I deserved all along, and they know what’s best for me.’ _

"Judge isn't exactly the type of person you refuse a summons from. I didn't know what to do apart from- I don’t know… leave town? Shave my head and change my fucking name?” "

Luffy pouts at him. “If you'd told us we could've done something, like hidden you at our place."

Sanji rakes a hand through his hair and leans over the balcony, staring off into the dark manor gardens. “This was all a big mistake. I thought I would come back to tell Judge to eat shit, but I just let myself get bullied again.”

“Well, they can't force you to say 'I do', can they?" Ace says.

Sanji opens his mouth, then closes it again. 

"Besides, we already made up our minds that we're not going to let him take you away."

Luffy nods emphatically.

"Yep, minds made up." Luffy says.

“Guys, you _ can’t…_ Judge is _ evil, _ he has money and connections and- _"_

Ace interrupts him with a flippant wave. “Buddy, I don’t care how evil your family is, when this is done, they’ll wish they had left you alone.”

Luffy finally manages to wrap his arms around Sanji’s waist and clings to him. “Yeah!” 

Sanji groans and pats the top of Luffy’s head.

“You just don’t give up, do you?"

"Hell no."

Ace watches Luffy snuggle into Sanji with a hint of jealousy, even though he knows his brother doesn't mean anything by it.

"Luffy… could you go find Sabo? Make sure he's not… trying to steal some dowager's fortune or something."

"Oh! Sure thing." He winks and finger-guns his way back into the hall, "Até mais!" 

The door bangs closed once again and Ace moves to stand next to Sanji at the balcony. He clears his throat awkwardly, "You look... really nice tonight."

Ace lets his eyes trail down Sanji's slim figure, trying not to think about how quickly he would shove him against the wall and tear the fancy suit from his body if he asked him to.

"Thanks, you're the first person to say so."

Sanji laughs, but it sounds empty and a little desperate. "I thought if I confronted Judge head-on I could finally put some stuff to rest, make my peace with it instead of just running away, but.. "

"Nothin' wrong with running away sometimes. You did, and you came off better for it. You could've ended up like blue boy, whining about sports cars and feeling up waitresses.”

Ace fiddles with Sanji's collar and slips his silk tie out from his waistcoat. "You don't need to prove yourself to them, you're a much better person without even having to try."

“Thanks but…” Sanji mutters. “Ace whatever you’re planning- I don’t like the sounds of it.”

Ace slowly pulls his fingers down the smooth silk tie and winds it around his fingers.

“Don’t you trust us?”

“Of course I do… I just- I don’t want any of you getting hurt.”

“Luffy and Sabo are both in, and we know what we’re getting into this time. Like you said, these guys are bullies and we’re going to show them that they can’t do whatever they want.”

Sanji bites down hard on his lip as Ace winds his tie further up until his hand is touching the knot at his neck, and Sanji has to step closer until their faces are nearly touching.

“I just want to hear it from you, that you want our help.”

The stoic facade Sanji has been keeping up falls away like a thousand-pound weight. Up close Ace can see the shadows under Sanji’s eyes with the faint blue veins in them, the patches of stubble from clumsy shaving and the red rimming his ocean-blue eyes. He nods. "I would like your help... very much please."

Ace gives him a gentle smile and slowly releases his tie. Sanji falls forward to rest his head against his shoulder and Ace is surprised to feel his hands wind around his waist, under his suit jacket as he hugs him. There’s something so intimate about his hands on Ace’s lower back that he has to fight off thoughts about shoving him against the balcony and kissing him.

"Uhm… Of course." Ace mumbles into his silky hair. He lets Sanji hug him for as long as he needs to. When he pulls back, his face is flushed pink and his hands seem to be reluctant to leave Ace’s hips. He then picks at the crumpled length of silk that used to be his tie, and raises a grumpy eyebrow.

"Oh… that'll iron out, right? Sorry…"

* * *

“This is the second time I’ve climbed over this goddamn fence.” Sanji takes Luffy’s hand as he climbs over the wrought-iron fence and the man chuckles at him. The way he perches between the spikes in his black tux makes him resemble an overgrown crow. As he lands on the other side of the fence he glances back towards the manor, wondering how long it will take Judge to realise he disappeared. With Luffy beside him he feels safer at least, he grabs Sanji's hand as they run through the pine trees towards where Petunia is waiting for them. Sanji is so happy to see her he could cry.

“Seatbelt!” Ace snaps at Luffy as he tumbles into the passenger seat. Sanji chooses to clamber onto the back with Sabo.

“What’s the red one’s name?” he says, as Petunia purrs to life and Ace drives them back towards the city.  
“Ichiji, why?”

Sabo reaches into his breast pocket and pulls out a designer leather wallet.

“He gave me a present. It was just hanging out his pocket, so I assumed he was giving it to me.”

Sabo opens the wallet up and his eyes widen with delight. “A VIP membership for a strip club… and a nude photo, classy!”

"Of himself?" Sanji says with a laugh.

Sabo lets the photo flutter away in the wind. "You don't need to know." 

He pulls a small black book from his breast pocket. “I grabbed the shitty father’s planner too. It looks like he was planning for you to get married in a few months.”

Sanji shivers a little, either from the cold wind rushing past the truck or the thought of being roped into a loveless marriage, maybe a little of both.

"I'm sorry for causing you all so much trouble…"

"Eh, don't be. I had a blast tonight. Though this is without a doubt the hardest Ace has ever gone trying to get a date with someone.” Sabo leans back and grins. “He’s not about to give up on you, so we aren’t either.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I guess we’re going for three chapters… Three sounds like the right number I wonder why- Also if you're wondering why I put Galette in Pudding's place… do I need to explain? Pudding is 16 in the manga (Oda please stop being creepy just STOP). Galette is older and pretty underutilised in canon, which is a shame cause she has a pretty cool design if you ask me. And yeah, there's still a pretty big age gap but I didn't think either Judge or BM would give a shit. They're such GREAT parents after all.  
I made Ace a little taller in this AU cause… Ace big…. Good. I'm going to ATTEMPT to lay off the angst in the next chapter but… we'll see.  
(Don’t drink and drive kids, I’m not sure if necking a glass of champagne means you’re not allowed to drive but DON’T DRINK AND DRIVE. And also don’t do drugs.)


	3. If your head is high, you'll never fear at all

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sabo calls in a ‘specialist’ to help ruin the Vinsmoke’s plans, Ace and Sanji ease into a state of passionate suspense… and it’s time to burn the whole thing to the ground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Howdy y’all, I’m reviving this fic from the dead… only for this to be the last chapter anyway? Cause logic.   
I’m making it a little longer than before to make up for it tho! Chapters for this one have gotten progressively longer anyway since I have 0 self control…  
Anyone up for more touch starved/repulsed cook and cowboy??? Er, there’s some slight horny crimes in this one and mild violence, but nothing major.
> 
> Drag the Vinsmokes, dRAG THE VINSMOKES DRAG THE VINSMOKES  
HRHHFHF *BARKS*  
(I don’t like ‘em).  
ENJOY!

_ At first none of them knew how to act around the bone-thin blonde with cold, dead eyes and bruises all over his face. Ace figured he needed time to settle into the chaos that was Dadan's home for wayward shitheads, and decided to give him a wide berth.  _

_ That of course would have gone well, were it not for Luffy’s mere existence. _

_ Luffy grabbing things off other people’s plates was such a normal part of dinner that Ace had long stopped even thinking about it. But once he took something off Sanji’s plate, all hell had broken loose. Sanji went from sullenly hunched over his plate to bristling and screaming the moment Luffy shoved the bread roll into his mouth.  _

_ “FUCKING GIVE IT BACK!” _

_ “I can’t, I already ate it!”  _

_ "YOU SHITHEAD!"  _

_ Sanji launched himself at Luffy from across the table, scattering plates and causing Dadan and the other adults to groan.  _

_ Ace calmly stood up, walked over to where the two boys were rolling on the floor like a couple feral dogs, and grabbed Sanji by the front of his shirt. He was so light, it wasn’t hard to lift him off the ground.  _

_ “Don’t. Touch. Him. He’s my little brother, and NO ONE touches my brothers, you got it?!" _

_ Luffy hopped back to his feet and brushed himself off, “Aw, put him down Ace, he didn’t know.” _

_ "Answer me!" Ace snapped.  _

_ He waited for the terrified boy to nod before dumping him back on his feet. _

_ “There’s plenty of damn food you know!” Dadan yelled at them, “You don’t have to go bananas over a bread roll!” _

_ “Boy, we get dinner  _ and  _ a show with you around, Sanji!” Sabo said, shoving another bite of stew into his mouth. _

_ Sanji had stood blinking up at Ace for a few seconds before turning to run out of the room.  _

_ After they cleared up the broken plates, Ace took his brothers aside and checked Luffy over for injuries (a slight nosebleed, Sanji evidently wasn’t much of a fighter). _

_ “That new kid is crazy…” Luffy said, swiping at a dribble of blood from under his nose. _ _   
_ _ “I don’t think he’s been living on the street long,” Ace said, “probably been finding it tough to get food.” _

_ Ace grabbed a napkin to wipe Luffy’s nose for him and continued, “I think something really bad happened to him, he flinches if you so much as fart near ‘im." _

_ Sabo let out a small 'oh…' but Luffy still looked confused. “Whad’you mean, bad how?” _

_ “I’m saying someone was knocking him around at home, parents probably.” _

_ "But gramps hits us all the time and we don't flinch like that."  _

_ "Gramps is an idiot, parents shouldn’t hit their kids! He says he hits us to toughen us up, but I think someone hit Sanji so much he  _ broke _ . I want both of you to promise you won't start fights with him or make sudden moves around him. And don’t call him ‘crazy’."  _

_ "He started a fight with  _ me! _ ” Luffy said, folding his arms over his chest, “What was I s’posed to do?” _

_ "Just walk away. You’re a little squirt, but you’re still tougher than he is.” _

_ Luffy took a swing at him and tried to tackle him, as if to prove his point. Even at thirteen he was far stronger than any kid his age had the right to be. Ace easily shoved him away with a grin, “I’m gonna go out and look for him.” _

_ “You want us to come with?” Sabo said. _

_ Ace shook his head. “Better I go alone, I think he’s pretty scared of us.” _

_ Something about how angry Sanji was all the time reminded him far too much of himself when he was younger, back before he had met his brothers. Weak and skinny... and so, so angry.  _

_ Ace found him at the old warehouse district, picking up pieces of brick and flinging them into the windows of an old, disused building. _

_ “...Hey stranger.” Ace said. _

_ “Leave me alone.” Sanji snapped quickly, before picking up another hunk of brick and hurling it with an angry grunt. _

_ “I told Luffy not to take food off your plate anymore. He didn’t mean to make you mad, it’s just… how he is.” _

_ A sullen eye flicked his way, ocean blue piercing against the black bruising all around it. He palmed the rock for a second, which made Ace wonder if he was thinking about throwing it at him. Instead he heaved it through a second floor window with another almighty crash. _

_ "You must've known you couldn't fight Luffy, why'd you try it?"  _

_ “Why do you care?” _

_ “Because we’re all in the same boat! I mean.... we’re all here because our parents died or didn’t want us, so quit acting like you're the only one in pain!" _

_ Sanji’s thin shoulders dropped and Ace started to feel a little bad for raising his voice. He knew someone at the end of his rope when he saw them, and Sanji looked like he were on the last few frayed strands on a particularly worn piece of rope. _

_ On top of the bruises, there was some nasty cuts around his knuckles that had been there before he had gotten in his scrap with Luffy. _

_ "You been gettin' in fights, who with?" Ace said. _

_ "You wouldn't know them."  _

_ "I know everyone around here. C’mon, who was it? Apoo, Hawkins?"  _

_ "You know  _ shockingly,  _ I didn’t catch their names while I was on the ground getting kicked to death!” Sanji winced a little at Ace’s reproachful look, and said in a smaller voice, “There was this redhead guy, and a weird blonde kid in a mask."  _

_ "Oh, Kid's gang. What’d you do to piss them off?" _

_ "I was just trying to find somewhere to sleep when they cornered me. They told me to hand over all my money and this gold locket thing I had. I wouldn’t give it over because... It was the only thing I had to remember my…” Sanji trailed off and folded his thin arms over his chest, “I don’t care if I never see that money again, but that locket was the only thing I had left that meant anything to me.” _

_ "You want me to go get it back?"  _

_ "They've probably sold it already."  _

_ "Worth a try, isn't it?"  _

_ "It's just a dumb locket, it's not important..." _

_ "Important enough for you to get your ass kicked for it. Come on.” _

_ Ace led him down over the railway tracks that marked the edge of Kid's territory. Ace wasn't afraid of fighting the guy, but it was easier to establish a few boundaries than get into pointless scraps every time they crossed paths. Kid’s gang had agreed to stay away from the park in the centre of town in return. _

_ In between some old stationary train cars, Kid and his entourage sat around a fire, laughing and smoking cigarettes. _

_ A big blonde kid with a mask leapt to his feet at their arrival and waved what seemed to be a very large machete towards Ace’s neck. “Portgas? What the fuck do you want?”  _

_ “A parley, I’m not here to fight.” Ace said calmly. _

_ Kid, with his red hair shaped like some kind of angry red flower, craned his neck to peer around Ace, towards where Sanji was hiding in his shadow. “Parley, huh? Does that little psycho want to parley too?" _

_ “FUCK YOU!” Sanji yelled as he tried to lunge towards Kid. Ace caught him by the collar of his jacket before Killer could point the blade his way. _

_ “You said you ain’t here to fight, huh? Didn't think you'd be up for another round after we used you for a football." Kid said with a grin. _

_ "He's cool,  _ aren't  _ you?" Ace said, with a dangerous warning look.  _

_ "Yeah. Whatever."  _

_ Sanji wrenched himself out of Ace’s grip and stalked away a few steps. _

_ "Listen Kid, I understand that you stole something from him. I’d really appreciate it if you could give it back.”  _

_ "You mean this?"  _

_ Sanji's breath caught in his throat as Kid casually reached into a pocket and dangled the little square of yellow gold in front of them.  _

_ "Kinda gay isn't it, what d'you need girl’s jewelry for?” _

_ "There's a picture inside and an engraving, its got no value to anyone but me!"  _

_ "I dunno about that, we could eat well for a couple weeks if we sell this thing. We had it checked out, it’s eighteen karat.” _

_ A tall boy at Kid’s side with clumpy blueish hair shuffled his feet and mumbled. “...What do carrots have to do with gold?” _ _   
_ _ “Shut up Heat!” Kid snapped. _

_ “We can work something out.” Ace said quickly, “Dadan’s got tons of food, we can raid the pantry and trade.” _ _   
_ _ “Screw that, we don’t want your table scraps!” Kid huffed and swung the locket around on his finger. It meant money and decent food to them, but something desperately important to Sanji. Ace sighed and swiped a hand through his hair, knowing how bad Luffy and Sabo were going to kick his ass when he said, "We'll find you something else that has the same value then. It might take a while but..." _

_ "You better make good on that, Portgas. And I want an extra ten percent, for damages. I think I cracked a knuckle on his face." _

_ "Damages, right... You have my word." _

_ Kid glared at them for a few more moments before throwing the fine gold chain at them over the fire. _

_ “Take it then, and get the hell out of my face.” _

_ Ace snatched it out of the air and grinned, “Thanks, Kid!” _

_ “Whatever… If you come back here without my payment, I’m going to send you home to Dadan in pieces.” _

_ “Yep, have a good one y’all!” _

_ Ace finger gunned his way out of the conversation and tugged Sanji away by the arm. _

_ "Is that it?!" Sanji whispered. _

_ "Yeah, let's just get out of here before he changes his mind."  _

_ Once they were safely within their turf back near the park, Sanji gave Ace a sidelong glance. “How did you do that?” _

_ “I know it seems like living on the street is all about fighting and scraping by... But if you can form understandings with guys like Kid, maybe even make some friends… Everything evens out. We’re all struggling, and we gotta help each other out.” _

_ Ace dropped the locket into Sanji’s hand and smiled. _

_ Sanji went very, very red as he slipped the keepsake over his neck and hid it under his sweater, “T-thanks…” _

_ “Don’t mention it.” _

* * *

Ace pads into the kitchen, wearing only boxer shorts and scratching his ass. The incredible smells wafting from the stove confuse him, their kitchen usually reeks of burnt cheese and the cheap ramen Sabo sucks down like there’s no tomorrow. Then he spots Sanji shutting the fridge door with his hip. He’s wearing the same clothes he wore the night before, rumpled half-unbuttoned dress shirt and pinstripe pants. He hums a jazzy tune as he works and gives Ace a tiny smile that makes his face hot.

“Mornin’ stranger.” Ace mumbles, trudging over to make moony eyes at something sizzling in a huge skillet.

“Frittata.” Sanji explains, grabbing a block of cheese and grating some melting curls over the top. 

“You’re a guest, I should be cooking.” Ace says with a pout.   
“Don’t be ridiculous, it’s the least I can do... For getting me out of there last night.”

Ace tilts his brow and sticks out his lower lip, in what he hopes is his best puppy-dog look, until Sanji’s distracted scowl softens.

“Um, you can help if you want.”

Ace grins and reaches up towards the spice rack, picking out dried red peppers and chilli powder to haphazardly throw them over the food. Sanji sighs with a wan smile as the food turns a shade of orangey red, but leaves him to it.

Ace’s hand closes over the shaker of paprika at the same moment Sanji’s does, “Something wrong?”

“Um, no.” Sanji says, the bridge of his nose turning pink. “Just don’t use too much, it’ll overwhelm the flavour of the…”

Sanji edges closer until their foreheads are nearly touching. Even though Ace’s morning breath could probably make concrete crumble, Sanji doesn’t seem to mind. Ace is closing his eyes and leaning forward, when a loud fart noise makes them both jump out of their skins. They both turn to yell at the short, scruffy man who had snuck up behind them, “LUFFY!”

A whooping cackle bursts out of Luffy as he avoids a swipe from a spatula and a kick to the shins, “You guys are so GAY!” 

A slapping noise echoes through the small room as Sanji catches him a glancing blow across the face with the greasy spatula. 

"Sanji, you should stay here forever… and cook for us!" Luffy hugs him from behind and clings to him while he cuts the frittata into wedges.

"Cupboard Love*..." Sanji mutters. Ace starts to drool as Sanji puts a plate into his hands, loaded with a generous wedge of frittata.

Luffy dives into a chair at the table and tears into his share of the food like a piranha, while Sanji sips coffee and watches him. Ace grabs the hot sauce from the middle of the table and glops it over his frittata.

"So, you gonna tell me what this brilliant plan of yours is?" Sanji says, eyeing the sacrilege of his food with the air of being too polite to comment.

Ace licks sauce off his fingers thoughtfully before counting down.

“Okay, so… what I wanna do is accomplish three things; I want to humiliate your dumb family, I want to make sure they leave you alone, and I want to see tears streaming down your bio-dad's big stupid face."

Sanji chuckles and leans back in his chair, "That third one might be hard to pull off, he doesn't have feelings."

"Then, we'll just have to try extra hard, won't we?"

"Ooh, frittata!" Sabo says as he mooches into the room and grabs himself a plate.

"Spinach and bell peppers..." Sanji says, glowing a little with pride as Sabo digs in and makes rapturous noises. A sneeze explodes out of Luffy as he reaches for a glass of water, "My tongue is burning!"

"... _ Lots _ of pepper.”

“Get some milk you coward.” Sabo says to Luffy, “I called in a specialist, she should be here soon.” 

“A specialist?” Sanji says.

When the knock comes from the door, Sabo bounces over eagerly to go and answer it, turning back to him quickly to say, "As in, someone specifically interested in ruining your dad's life."

He opens the door with a cheerful, "Hey babe!" 

The woman at the door wears a ruffled blouse and a paperboy cap, her arms loaded with so many files and paperwork that they’re almost spilling onto the floor. Sabo grins and leans down to kiss her, but she quickly shoves him aside to get to the kitchen table. 

“Hello Sanji!” she says, slapping the papers down onto the table. 

"Ah, hey Koala, it's been a while!" Sanji says.

"Sorry to get straight down to brass tacks, but when Sabo told me  _ Judge Vinsmoke  _ is your father... I just couldn't believe it! You know he's running for mayor, right?"

"Ah… That would explain a lot." 

Ace couldn't give two shits about who's running this armpit of a city usually, judging by Sanji's reaction, he doesn't either. 

“See the  _ thing is _ ," Koala continues, "I've been looking for ways to expose how corrupt he is for  _ months… _ "

“And you want some dirt on him?” Sanji grabs a cigarette out of his pocket and twiddles it in his fingers. “I’ve got a whole barnyard.”

“I've got plenty of dirt already; bribery, embezzling… I even have good reason to believe he has connections with some of the crime families. Sabo told me how awful they've been to you, if we could find a way to document that somehow, a video maybe? Something to cause a stir before his first major rally."

Sanji looks away and fiddles with his cigarette like it’s a lifeline.

“We don’t want to put you in harm’s way.” Ace says pointedly. 

“No, it’s okay. I’ll do whatever needs to be done.” 

The resolute way Sanji says it make a knot of worry twist at Ace’s gut. He wishes, not for the first time, that he could take Sanji away from all this, so he would never have to worry about it again. 

Sabo goes to his jacket to grab the planner he stole the night prior, and flicks through it while absentmindedly shoving food into his mouth, "Lunch with Senator Charlotte, today at noon..." 

"Ah shit… He's probably expecting me to be there too." Sanji says, and they all jump as his phone rattles on the table.

_ Speak of the devil,  _ Ace thinks.

Sanji picks it up and holds it a few inches away from his ear, on account of the man on the other end roaring as soon as he hits the answer button. "SANJI! WHERE THE  _ HELL _ DID YOU GO LAST NIGHT!?”

“I...” Sanji starts, only to get immediately drowned out.

“I have let you fuck up my life long enough - you are  _ not  _ going to ruin this for me now! Be at the Spice Bean at noon or I’m sending Ichiji to get you - and look presentable for god’s sake!”

Sanji is left holding the phone like it just turned into a handful of bees.

“Wow... “ Koala says, “What a nasty piece of work!”   
“You have no idea…” Sanji mutters, “Dress  _ presentable  _ he says…”

He tosses his phone onto the table, then a little spark lights up his face. Ace lifts an eyebrow as Sanji turns to him, with a hint of a smirk playing at his lips.

“You mind if I borrow some clothes?”

  
Ace leads Sanji into his room and starts to search through his pile of clean clothes, neatly stored in a heap on the top of his dresser.

“I don’t think I have much around that screams ‘fancy lunch’.” Ace says, holding up one of his many worn t-shirts.

“Doesn’t matter, I’m done trying to impress Judge.”

Sanji picks the most obnoxiously coloured hawaiian shirt he can find, along with some bright nylon cargo shorts.

“If your goal is to make their eyes bleed, I think you’ve made a good start.”

Sanji randomly grabs a baseball hat from an old pizzeria Ace used to work at, and plonks it onto his head. The cartoon rat they used as their logo was supposed to look like it was happily shoving a slice of pizza in its face, but instead the graphic designer fucked up and made it look like it was vomiting a torrent of cheese. Ace always despised the place, it perfectly illustrated their business practices and the quality of their food.

“How do I look?” Sanji says, when the ensemble is complete. Ace strokes the stubble on his chin, as if studying a piece of art in a gallery, and pouts in thought. “Absolutely fuckin’ atrocious.”

“Perfect!"

“They’re going to kill you if you show up looking like this...”

“Don’t worry, I’ve got an idea.”

Sanji’s smirk deepens as he spots Ace’s crocs in the corner of the room and goes to slip them on… with his socks still on, no less.

“Sanji please, just take care of yourself, okay?” Ace says as he turns to leave. He reaches out to tug the collar on Sanji’s awful shirt straight, and cups his face in both his hands. “And come back here as soon as you can.”   
“C’mon Ace, keep worrying and you’re going to sprout feathers and turn into a giant mother hen.” Sanji lifts an eyebrow and it’s hard to not kiss the cheeky smile off his face.

“Oh my god, just get out of here,” Ace sighs, “I can’t take you seriously with that hat on.”

  
  


* * *

The Spice Bean is familiar to Sanji, a building that sets itself apart from all the restaurants downtown with a pretty domed roof, decorated all over with colourful mosaic tiles. Sanji can’t think of a single restaurant in the city he hasn’t visited, to check out the competition for the Baratie and get menu ideas at the same time. 

Sabo and Koala hover by the side of the building, as Sanji finishes telling them about his plan. 

"Ace is  _ not _ going to be happy about this," Sabo grouches, "I told him I'd be looking after you." 

"What Ace doesn't know can't hurt him. Just… make sure you’re nearby and ready to record anything that goes down.”

“We’ll be ready, good luck.” Koala says, giving him a thumbs-up as he heads into the restaurant. 

The look on Judge’s face when Sanji strolls inside almost makes everything worth it. He swears the hairs on his hideous moustache stand up on end, and his jowly face goes the colour of old milk. The intimidating figure of Senator Charlotte sits opposite him in a tailored pink pantsuit and a gaudy purple trilby perched on top of her head. She grins at Sanji like she plans to eat him.

“Mrs Charlotte… since I didn’t introduce my son last night. This is Sanji.” Judge says.

“Hey.” Sanji says, giving her a bored shake of his hand, purposely not bothering to make eye contact. She lets out a musical laugh and shakes back hard enough to make his shoulder joint pop. He wonders if he should have picked some even more eye-bleeding clothes to compete with her choice in fashion.

“Really living up to his name isn’t he?” she says. Galette shoots him a mildly horrified look and all three of his brothers look disgusted, Yonji gets to his feet before Ichiji pulls him back down. Reiju looks the same as always, the carefully set neutral look giving nothing away.

There’s already a mountain of appetisers on the table when Sanji slumps into his chair. He grabs a samosa and dunks it messily into a bowl of yellow mint sauce, letting it drip onto his shirt while looking Judge straight in the eye.

“So, about the engagement.” Judge says.

Galette stifles a groan and Sanji almost starts feeling a little bad for her, she wants this about as much as he does. He crunches his samosa with his mouth open and tries to summon a burp.

“If we have the engagement party next week, we could have the wedding planned and done away with in a few months.”

“Yes, yes! As soon as possible!” Charlotte chirps as she shoves handfuls of bhajis and poppadoms into her face. “And I assume we’ll be getting grandkids somewhere down the line too!”

Sanji chokes and coughs a few flakes of crust onto the table, trying to avoid the mutinous look Galette shoots him.

“I have my hopes set on that president’s daughter for one of my sons next, she’s quite a catch!” Charlotte continues obliviously.

“I need a smoke.” Sanji says, abruptly kicking his chair noisily aside as he gets up. Yonji and Ichiji follow him as he hoped they would. He reaches into his pocket and sends a rapid one-handed text out to Sabo;

_ headed outside now - alleyway, fuckhead brothers are pissed, now might be a good time to get ready. -S ~ <3 _

In the narrow alleyway, Ichiji and Yonji corner him against a wall and he instinctively reaches for a cigarette to combat the rising waves of panic. Ichiji’s face is almost as red as his hair as he slaps the cigarette and lighter out of his hands, “What the  _ hell _ do you think you’re doing?”

“What do you mean?” Sanji says innocently. 

“This little display!” Ichiji waves angrily at his clothes.   
“I’m an adult, I can dress however I want.”

“You’re determined to fuck everything up for us, aren’t you? Go home and get changed.”

Sanji leans around the corner and locks eyes with Koala, who has her phone out at the ready. She shoots him a quick thumbs-up and he responds with a tiny nod before she ducks back out of sight.

“You’re still playing father’s little attack dog, you gonna beat me up until I do what he says?” Sanji says.   
“He told me I could do what I want…. Provided I leave your face alone.” Ichiji shows him his teeth as Yonji wrenches his arms behind his back. The punch in the gut makes all his breath leave him in a huge ‘oof!’.

“You got off easy considering what you did to me.” Ichiji clenches his fist, and Sanji notices he can’t close it all the way, possibly nerve damage from when he carved his hands up when they were kids. Sanji looks at the white scarring, then locks eyes with him with an ice cold smile. 

"Not like you were going to be a concert pianist or anything. What’s the matter, can’t jack off properly?"

Ichiji’s backhand hits him like a shot from a cannon, it’s not hard to pretend it doesn’t hurt like fucking hell as he falls out of Yonji’s grip and onto the floor.

"Dammit Itch!" Yonji yells, "Are we gonna tell dad he fell and punched himself in the face?!”

Ichiji scowls at his brother, then looks dumbly at the blood pouring out of Sanji’s nose and dribbling over his hand.

“I… hm. Maybe you should go home, get cleaned up before tomorrow.”

Sanji spits a mouthful of blood onto his shoe and wipes his mouth, “You  _ think _ ?!”

“Father’s first rally for mayor starts tomorrow and he wants us all to look our best. Put an ice pack on it, and wear makeup or something. You know how to do that, right?”

“Go _ fuck _ yourself!”

“See you tomorrow, little brother!”

The brothers saunter back into the restaurant, leaving him to wipe a shot glass worth of blood from his face. He gathers up his lighter and shoves the cigarette in his mouth, even though the filter soon gets soaked with blood. Sabo is waiting with a handkerchief to wipe his face for him, "You okay man?"

"Oh Sanji…" Koala says, clutching her phone. 

"You got that all recorded, right?" Sanji says.

"Yeah but-"

Sanji lights his cigarette, "Then, it's fine."

They head downtown to the World Economy News headquarters and Koala leads them to her office, or what is more like an oversized store cupboard. Two desks fight for dominance in the middle and the three of them have to squash themselves past the wall to sit down.

“Are you…  _ sure _ you’re okay?” Koala says, tilting her brows at where Sanji’s nose is leaking out a few last droplets of blood. 

“Spectacular.” Sanji grumbles.

_ Fucking Ichiji. _

Koala reaches into her desk to pull out a laptop and starts it up. 

“So, what now?”

“We upload the video to the Internet and watch the fireworks. Everyone knows Judge is a horrible choice for mayor, but until now he's been too good at covering his tracks." Koala says.

"I want to see it."    
As they play back the footage, there’s no way it could be misconstrued as anything but an assault, but as Sanji watches himself get smacked in the face for the third or so time, he has a creeping realisation. 

“They’re gonna find some way to turn this back on me somehow. I just know it.”

“Let’s not worry about that for now, for now we have to wait and see.

  
  


* * *

“Man… I wanted to go with them… Can't concentrate on this crap." Luffy grumbles, lying on his stomach and surrounded by papers and textbooks.

"You just wanted to go eat curry. Ten more minutes." Ace says over his cup of tea.

Luffy makes a frustrated sound and rolls around on the floor like a dog with an itchy back. 

"I'm so tired of studying!" 

"Have you taken your medication today?" 

"No, I forgot…" 

"I should've reminded you, go take a break." 

Ace follows him to the kitchen as he gets a glass of water to take his adderall with. 

"Hey, cheer up.” Ace says, “Once you pass the written exam, this'll be a whole new lease on life for you. You'll be independent, maybe you can get your own apartment!"

"You just want to get rid of me so you and Sanji can go at it." Luffy says as he takes a gulp of water, which he snarfs down his front as he laughs at the scandalised expression on Ace's face. 

"I would never abandon my baby brother for anything, let alone a man. I'm offended." 

"I'm just joking, jeez!" Luffy laughs, “I can’t wait for you to call me every ten minutes asking if I’m trapped in a burning building.”

Luffy’s just necked his medication when they hear the door open, and Ace runs over like an excited puppy before stopping dead in his tracks, “Oh my god what the fucking  _ hell?!”  _ _   
_ Sanji comes through the door with bruising around his eyes and his nose covered in dried blood, raising his hands guiltily, “I know it looks bad but.” 

“They hit you?!”

“I had it under control, I  _ wanted _ them to hit me!”

" _ That  _ was your plan?!”

"Ace, I knew what I was getting into, and we have the perfect ammunition against them now. I swear this clip… Koala shot it like a movie."

“You shouldn’t have got yourself hurt, you could’ve found some other way!”

Sanji looks off to the side and rubs some dried blood from under his nose.   
“You dumbass…” Ace snatches his bloody chin between his fingers and pulls him into a kiss, ignoring the shocked looks all around. He only stops when he realises Sanji probably can’t breathe through the blood clogging his nostrils. 

Ace pulls back with an awkward clearing of his throat, realising that the others are all staring at them.

"Did you just…” Luffy says, “Have your first kiss?"

Ace rubs a hand over the back of his neck, then mutters "...Second."

" _ Ace!"  _ Sanji groans, before hiding his head in his hands. 

“Second?!”

"Remember Sabo's party, when we snuck out to drink hooch? We kinda… went made out on the beach."

"I  _ fucking _ knew it!” Sabo says with a grin, "Oh uh, I mean… Congratulations?" 

"So anyway," Sanji says, desperately wanting to change the subject, "Judge is expecting me to propose to Galette in a few days, and I look like pork tenderloin. You got an ice pack?" 

"Of course, come on."

Ace takes his hand and leads him to the kitchen, grabbing a box of band aids and sitting him down at the table. As he cleans his face off with some warm saltwater, he starts to see what Sanji means about calling him a ‘mother hen’.

"Sorry I got blood on your clothes…" 

"It's fine, with that pattern I don't think it'll even show up. I'll get you some clean ones." 

Once he’s done, he fixes up a bag of ice wrapped in a towel and Sanji presses it to his face.

"Hope this doesn't swell up too much before tomorrow…" Sanji says miserably.

“What’s happening tomorrow?”   
“Some stupid rally, probably just wants us there to line up and look pretty… So much for that.”

“You always look pretty to me.”

Sanji chuckles and looks aside, “God, you’re so cheesy.”

“Hey, stay here tonight. And don’t worry about anything, we’re gonna protect you.”

“Whatever you say…”   
  


* * *

Later, as evening starts to fall outside, they slump together on the couch in front of some mind-rotting TV show with a laugh track. Ace gave Sanji a stretched-out old t-shirt and a red plaid shirt to wear and threw the ugly shirt he was wearing in the bin. The shirt is so huge on him he's practically swimming in it. 

A couple hours have passed by the time Ace notices the apartment has gone strangely quiet.

“Huh, wonder where the others got to.” Ace says with a dumb, nervous little laugh. It occurs to him as soon as he says it that they cleared out to give him and Sanji some alone time. The emptiness of the apartment fills him with something akin to stage fright.

His phone buzzes with a text from Sabo, just to confirm his suspicions;

"Hey king, I'm staying at Koala's tonight and Luffy is studying with Usopp. We won't be back until tomorrow so good luck. ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;)"

_ How many goddamn wink emojis is necessary, really?  _ Ace thinks, before tossing his phone over his shoulder. "Guess they're out for tonight."

"Oh."

There’s something strangely intimate about seeing Sanji in Ace's own clothes. They're so unlike the usual sharp angles of his suits, the neck of the shirt drapes off his pale shoulder and exposes the beauty marks that dot his neck. Ace can’t stop his eyes flicking over to Sanji, mostly towards the bruising spreading over his nose and eyes.

“Will you stop looking at me like that? Mother hen.” Sanji reaches over to prod him in the cheek, making clucking noises.

“I wouldn’t have to be one, if you three dumbasses weren’t always givin’ me reasons to worry.” Ace grumps, slapping his hand away and folding his arms over his chest.

Sanji laughs, the same old humourless chuckle he’s always made with a flip of his hair and the same old mean smirk pulling at his lips, "They’ve done  _ way _ worse to me before, I’m fine.”

Ace doesn’t smile back, "Yeah well,  _ I'm _ not!" 

He stares ahead at The TV angrily. Just knowing Sanji's brother put his hands on him again makes him clench his fists so hard his nails dig into his skin, “Maybe I’m a little sick of seeing people I care about get hurt, and there being  _ nothing  _ I can do about it!” he mutters.

Sanji looks a little startled at the anger in his voice and rakes his bangs away from his face, giving Ace a glimpse of his mismatched curly brows and concerned blue eyes before his hair falls back into place.

"Ace I… If there were some other way, I would’ve done it. I didn’t mean to make you worry about me.”

Ace barely has time to process the small shock of cool fingers brushing his warm cheek, when Sanji leans over to press a soft little kiss to his jaw.

_ He’s touching me, willingly? _

When Sanji had pulled away from the sweet little hug he had given him back at the manor, he hadn’t realised how utterly starved he was for more. The memory of his graceful hands on his lower back has been there constantly, especially when he went back to his room to sleep. It was all too easy to feel the ghosts of touches, and drive himself crazy wanting them again. 

Sanji's hand wanders over to Ace’s open shirt, and he can’t help but make a startled sound as his fingers lightly trace the scars that curve under his pectoral muscles. The sound hitches in his throat as Sanji’s thumb comes close to grazing his nipple. The room seems to shrink, the noise from the TV falls away until all that's left is Sanji's gentle hands and the rising heat in Ace's belly.

A tiny groan slips past his open lips at Sanji's mouth moving down his neck, and the coarse hair on his chin scratching his skin. 

He can't pretend anymore, that he doesn't want to rip the clothes from his body every time he sees him. Ace puts his hands either side of Sanji's face and finally kisses him how he's wanted to for months. 

He shoves Sanji down on the couch, so he’s just like he was that night on the beach, hungry and open to him and pressing hard into Ace's thigh. He slides a hand up Sanji's slim body, pulling up his shirt enough to see the raised pink scar along his ribs. He knows Sanji hates it, he always got changed quickly so no one would see it. But as he takes the risk and gently drags a fingernail along it, it's worth it to see him tremble and bite his lip, as well as feel his legs part slightly.

_ It's okay… you're safe and you're good and you're  _ mine.

He wants to press his lips to every beauty mark that dot his body, wants to hear more of the sounds he makes when he gently pulls his warm skin into his mouth and sucks.

His breaths become heavy as Ace slowly unzips Sanji’s shorts, and rubs him over his classy black briefs. The broken gasp Sanji makes as he strokes him over the soft fabric is beyond wonderful. 

He barely has time to finish his thought of  _ oh my god, is this finally happening?!  _ when he notices something's wrong. There's a tension in Sanji's body that wasn't there before, and it turns into the mental equivalent of having an ice-cold bucket of water thrown over him. He leans back as Sanji pushes him off. 

"I-I'm sorry… I thought I wanted- I don't know if I can… With another man I mean..." Sanji sits up and hugs his arms around himself

“It’s okay, we don't have to-" 

"I-I just feel hands on me and I-  _ panic _ … I’m just fucked up- Damaged goods... And don't try to tell me I'm not."

Ace cups his chin and presses his thumb to his lips to quiet him. "Hey, even if you are 'damaged goods', that don't make you any less worth caring for…" Ace kisses the top of his head and stands up.

"You can sleep in Sabo’s room tonight. It's… probably cleaner than Luffy's. Goodnight, Sanji."

Ace leaves him hunched over on the couch and quickly shuts the door to his bedroom behind him. Disappointment and rejection roll around his body as he slumps down on his bed, despite how much he tries to tell himself it’s nothing to do with him and everything to do with the family who did this to Sanji just because they thought it would be fun. 

_ Tomorrow… whatever they’re planning tomorrow, I’m going to burn it to the ground. _

  
  


It feels like he’s only just managed to drift off to sleep when Sabo gently knocks on his door in the morning.

"Yo, is it safe to come in?" 

"Yeah, whatever…" Ace mumbles into his pillow, still groggy with sleep and fighting hard to knock away the memories of last night.

Sabo pokes his head into his room and looks around, confused that he seems to be alone, "Is uh, Sanji not here?”

“I told him he could sleep in your room, is he not there?”

“No, did something happen?" 

Ace lets out a strained whine in his throat. 

"Let's just say nothin’ is ever straightforward with him…" 

“I really thought you were getting somewhere." 

"Yeah, I thought so too- it's… it’s not important right now.”

"The video we got has a ton of hits now - er... no pun intended - I mean everyone already hates Judge, but this definitely helped!”

Sabo plonks down on his bed to show him the video, and the hundreds of angry people in the comments section. Ace cringes at the short piece of footage, the noise and the way Sanji fell over makes him almost feel how much it hurt. 

"C’mon Sabs, I don't wanna see that… "

"Ah, sorry… "

"The Vinsmokes aren’t gonna be happy about that…” Ace sits up suddenly as he realises something, “Fuck, I should’ve gone with him, when they find out about the video, they might take it out on him!”

He rolls out of bed and starts tearing his room apart to find some clean clothes. 

“Where are they having this rally? I need to get down there.”

“Hey, don’t worry. Koala’s been down there since before they even started setting up. Let’s go!”

* * *

Sanji is wearing another of his fine suits, his armor back on. His face hurts too badly to even consider purposely annoying his brothers anymore. The makeup he put on mostly covered up the dark bruises around his nose and eyes, but it's still obvious what happened.

The platform outside of the Vinsmoke building in the city centre is about the last place in the world he wants to be, even more nerve-wracking than being on the stage at the party. Ranks of camera crews are pointed at Judge as he drones into a microphone.

“...Now I understand many citizens of All Blue City are concerned about the rise in homelessness, gang violence - corruption. Rest assured that I will tackle these problems with an iron fist!” A bored cheer runs through the crowd, with a few more enthusiastic baby boomers letting out a roar. 

As soon as Judge has finished his speech and the camera crews take a break, Yonji corners Sanji and shoves his phone in his face, with the video playing.

“You want to tell me what the hell this is?!”

“Oh, it almost looks like my wonderful brothers cornered me in an alleyway and beat the shit out of me.”   
“Who was recording?”   
“How should I know?! It was a public place, could’ve been anyone.”

Yonji looms over him with a look that freezes him to the spot, reminding him an awful lot of the stance that Judge used to take seconds before taking a swing at him.

“If I find out you had something to do with this, you’ll be going to your wedding in a full-body cast.”

Yonji mercifully leaves him alone, but he and Ichiji keep shooting murderous glances his way. Sanji wishes he could escape and go back to Ace, but he has the sinking feeling he fucked everything up once again.

_ Wonder when the last time I’ll disappoint him will be, when he finally decides to abandon me for good…  _

Sanji leans back against the barrier separating the stage from the crowd and burns through a cigarette, but it only leaves him feeling sick. He lights another regardless as he spots Reiju navigating her way down from the platform and around the camera crews. She’s looking tired and without her careful smile for once. She tries to push a strand of frazzled pink hair back into the band she wears, but instead pulls it off and lets the rest of her hair fall around her face.

“You got a cigarette?” she says.

He stares at her for a long moment before he obliges and lights it for her, she stares at him steadily as she takes a drag, “I’ve been doing damage control all day because of you, I know you set off Ichiji on purpose.”

He pauses over his own cigarette, “You gonna tell them?”   
“I wasn’t planning on it.”

He locks eyes with Reiju as he takes a drag, not wanting to blink first for some reason. It’s like having a staring contest with a cat, and he loses when the sharp sting of his cigarette smoke makes his eyes water.

“So you’re what, his secretary?”

“Secretary, personal assistant… whatever. Ichiji’s official statement was that you were ‘acting out’, and he was trying to talk you down. You had a little slip with your drug habit and things got out of control.”

“That’s the defence you’re going with, you think anyone’s going to buy that?”   
Reiju snorts, “Who’s the public going to believe, the man who donated thousands of dollars to a children’s hospital last week, or his son, who looks like he raided a thrift store?”

He glares at her and flicks his cigarette stub aside, “I’ve never understood you, just what do you  _ want?!” _

“I  _ want _ to have never been born a Vinsmoke! I’m sure you feel the same way. But if I can’t have that… maybe I just want freedom.”

“I’ve been trained to do his paperwork my whole life, I know every dirty thing he’s done to get this far. I’m not saying I’m going to help you screw him over, but if you did... maybe I’ll be able to do something else.

“You know what I’ve always wanted to study? Chemical biology, but instead he decided I was going to be his secretary, sitting in front of a computer all day, doing paperwork and covering up for all his scandals. I feel like a maid, cleaning up after the boys whenever they decide to sexually harass a temp worker or destroy a hotel room or two…”

She sighs and tosses her cigarette to the floor, then puts it out with her foot.

“Try harder, Sanji.” she says as she moves away, back to her father’s side.

_ Try harder, what the hell else can I do?  _ He thinks bitterly as he watches Judge take to the podium again. A cheer greets him as he waves to the crowd, but almost an equal amount of booing.

Sanji jumps a little as someone vaults over the barrier near the edge, where there’s only one extremely bored looking cop nearby to guard it. The cop yawns widely, either not noticing or not caring about Ace taking Koala’s hand and helping her over.

"Sanji, hey! I thought we were sticking together from now on." Ace says as he runs over.

"Uh… y-yeah I'm just… sorry about last night…" Sanji says weakly.

“We can figure stuff like that out later! I just want  _ you _ …" 

Ace sweeps him into his arms and he’s so lost in the giddy waves of  _ Ace is here he wants me- he actually wants me...  _ That everything else takes a backseat, especially when Ace cups his face in his hands and kisses him.

"Are you wearing foundation?" Ace says, swiping his thumb over Sanji's cheekbone and probably revealing his awful black eye. “...I kinda like it.”

Sanji can only chuckle and smile in Ace’s arms, until he realises that one of the camera crews at some point turned their cameras on and aimed them away from the stage, right towards them.

“Um, Ace…” Koala says.

"Oh. Yeah. There's tons of people around and they can all see us, woops!" 

“WHAT THE-?” Yonji bellows as he and the brothers march over.

“You pair of  _ freaks!”  _ Ichiji says, while Niji just stares at them with his lip twisted. 

Yonji steps forward, but Ace stands between him and Sanji.

“I always knew you were a f-”

Ace rounds on him furiously, “Don’t say that word if you value your life!”

"Who the fuck are  _ you?!"  _

"He’s my  _ boyfriend _ !" Sanji cuts in. Ace looks at him sharply, before his face breaks into a delighted grin. He points a finger at himself. 

“Me? Your boyfriend?!”   
“Well yeah…” Sanji says, “I mean, if you  _ want  _ to be.”

“You fucking get over here before anyone else sees you!” Ichiji points them inside the Vinsmoke building. Sanji’s knees feel so weak he doesn’t know how he’d still be standing if Ace weren’t squeezing his hand.

They try to block Koala from getting through the double doors, but she squeezes in between Niji and Yonji with a grin.

Sanji’s brothers stare them down as they ride in the elevator towards the top floor, and Ace meets their frosty silence with a warm smile.

"So, you're Sanji's brothers, huh? He's told us a lot about you guys." 

Ichiji glares at him silently.

"I mean, nothing  _ good,  _ but he's told me a lot!" 

Ichiji leads them to an empty boardroom overlooking the plaza, with the Vinsmoke family crest hanging on the wall. 

“Sit down.” Yonji says.

Ace's hand squeezes Sanji's tightly under the table when Judge looms out of the elevator and strides towards them.

" _ You _ … You absolute  _ fuck-up. _ " Judge growls dangerously.

Koala gets to her feet and steps into his path. She taps a voice recorder in her breast pocket and looks up at Judge sharply.

"I'd be very careful about what you say next, Mr Vinsmoke." 

"Who the hell are you?" 

"Oh, you'll soon get to know me very well. Koala Knight, junior reporter at WEN. Nice to meet you!" 

“This is between me and my son, who said you could be in here?”

“I did. Let’s talk, Mr Vinsmoke… I’m the one who uploaded the video, you’re dealing with  _ me _ now! I’ve been stockpiling every dirty little secret of yours, and if you don’t leave Sanji alone I’m going public with all of it!”   
“You’re blackmailing  _ me?! _ You little…”   
“Your reputation is already going to take a swan dive after today, don’t make it worse. I have it on good authority that you almost  _ beat your son to death _ , simply because he didn't act how you wanted him to."

"And I've got the scars to prove it." Sanji cuts in coldly, “If I get married to Galette, I will  _ never _ stop causing trouble for you. I’ll- I’ll cause so many scandals and make your life a living hell!”

"Tell 'em babe." Ace says with a smirk.

Sanji gets to his feet and stares up at Judge, "I want to make one thing perfectly clear, I am not your son. I want you to leave me and everyone at the Baratie alone and call off this sham of a marriage!”

"You don't have any right to tell  _ me _ what to do!" 

"Don't you  _ dare _ talk to me about rights!” Sanji snarls, “I didn't ask to be born and yet you made me suffer for it. You didn't bother giving me  _ one _ decent memory, and I never want to see you again.

"Sanji Vinsmoke died in the gutter after he escaped from a broken home. He’s not yours to control anymore.”

The elevator doors whisper open and Senator Charlotte blows into the room like an angry storm cloud - a very pink stormcloud at that. Galette follows at her heels. 

“JUDGE! What the hell is going on? Your son is having an affair with a  _ man _ , when he’s supposed to be marrying my daughter?!”

“S-Senator Charlotte I-”

“Do you have any idea how badly this is going to reflect on me? Poor little Galette is heartbroken!”

“Yes,  _ devastated.” _ Galette says tiredly, stretching out a hand in front of her to check that her nail polish isn’t chipped.

“This wedding is going to be more trouble than it’s worth, I can tell. You can forget about it!”

“Senator, please wait!”

Galette shrugs on her way out, and Sanji shrugs back. After they leave, Judge stares at the closed elevator doors silently, with his face drooping miserably.

"Well, that kinda took care of itself, huh?” Ace says as he gets to his feet, “Nice meeting ya pops." Ace shoots Judge the finger guns and slaps him on the back as they walk towards the elevator. 

"Lovely talk, I'll be in touch!" Koala calls on their way out. 

In the elevator, Sanji is too stunned to speak until they get to the ground floor.

“Was… was that your plan all along?”

“Yeah… Let’s just go with ‘yeah’”. Ace smirks and prods him in the cheek. “I’m ready to get the fuck out of here, how about you?”

* * *

Back at Ace, Sabo and Luffy’s apartment, the kitchen is full of good smells again as Sanji prepares them all a huge dinner. Ace shows how related to Luffy he is when he wraps his arms around Sanji’s waist as he cooks, and refuses to let go.

“Well, he didn’t quite cry, but I think he looked close enough.” Sanji says, smiling as Ace kisses the back of his neck.   
“Eh, if it doesn’t, we’ll be ready. Koala’s gonna have a field day with this one.”

Sanji glances over to where Sabo and Koala sit on the couch and smiles, she’s been talking on the phone more or less nonstop since they got back, but she seems happy. Something feels a bit off, he doesn’t realise what until he looks at the study books and paperwork all over the floor. Luffy abandoned it at some point to slouch in a chair on the balcony.

"Hey, keep an eye on the food for a minute." Sanji says, handing off his apron and wooden spoon to Ace.

"Gotcha!" 

“And by ‘keep an eye on it’ I don’t mean ‘stand there and watch it burn’.”

“Yeah, yeah!”

Sanji kisses him deeply as he ties the apron around his waist, almost forgetting about the food himself for a moment.

Sanji goes to join Luffy on the balcony where he’s resting with his chin on his hands, staring out at the city skyline. The glum, faraway look in his eyes doesn’t suit him at all.

"What's wrong Loof, too much PDA?"

Luffy gives him a distracted smile as he shakes his head, "I'm really happy for you two."

"So, what's wrong?" 

"Dunno… If I get this job and move out on my own, I'm gonna be lonely without Ace and Sabo around. Having an apartment to myself is gonna drive me nuts …" 

"Understandable, you're used to having other people around all the time." 

"I have my familia and so many friends but… It kinda feels like there’s someone missing, you know?"

"Someone you have in mind?"

"No, someone I haven't met yet, someone like Ace is to you- I don't know…!”

“Hey, relax. If you find the right person you’ll know, and if you never find anyone like that, it’s okay too. Being in a relationship isn’t everything.”

“Yeah… it seems pretty great though.”

They stare out at the city for a moment, watching lights flicker and drunks meander about on street level. A car honks its horn somewhere and a bottle smashes.

“Luffy… You remember back when everything happened with Kaido’s gang..." Sanji slips his hand into Luffy's and squeezes it hard, "You never blamed Ace for what happened, right?”   
Luffy isn’t just confused as he turns to look at him, he’s downright baffled and looking at Sanji like he’s gone completely insane.

“No, Why would I!? It was my decision!”

“Maybe you should tell him that once in a while, I think he’s still pretty guilty over it.”

“Well, that's dumb of him." Luffy twines their fingers together and leans his head on Sanji's shoulder.

“Yeah well, you know what he’s like.”

Sanji presses their foreheads together, “Promise you’ll tell him before you move out, he’s going to be worried as shit.”

“Yeah, yeah, jeez! You’ve been dating for like three hours and you’re already starting to sound like him.”

“Fuck you.”

Luffy sticks out his tongue as Sanji disentangles himself from his embrace. Sanji shoots him a fond grin over his shoulder. 

"You're gonna do great Luffy, no matter what you do. Let's go eat." 

"You’re my fucking hero, Sanji.”

Later that night, Sanji lays in Ace’s bed, with his broad hand moving in lazy circles around Sanji's lower back. They don’t talk for some time, exchanging small kisses and shy glances. Ace doesn’t push it any further than that, and he’s glad… at least for the moment. Even if his hand occasionally sneaks a little lower to cup one of his ass cheeks. 

"I changed my mind,” Sanji mumbles, “you're not a hen, you're a goose."

Ace cups his ass hard and makes him splutter out a laugh. 

"Honk. Hey, can I ask you something?” 

“Anything…” Sanji mumbles, stroking his hand down his abs and snuggling further into his warm skin. Ace swipes his hair away from his ear before he whispers. “You remember that first day we got back from the hospital, after Luffy... You thought I was asleep, but I heard what you said.”

Sanji’s eyes go wide as he sits up. “You- you what!?”

Ace smiles lazily and rests his hands behind his head. “How long have you had a crush on me, Sanji?”   
He pales and considers running out the door. He had only confessed under the assumption that Ace was passed out, and had no chance to actually hear it. But he just sits on his heels, staring at him with his mouth hanging open.

“You fucking  _ dickhead!” _

Ace starts laughing as Sanji blushes, the tips of his ears, his cheeks and the bridge of his nose go warm with it.

“Hey, if it makes you feel better, I thought I might have hallucinated the whole thing. I wasn’t even sure it really happened until just now.”

Sanji swipes a hand slowly over his face.

“Since… Look- those first few months when I ran away from home were  _ terrifying _ , but seeing you just so at home with it all… I was a dumbass, falling in love with the first person who was half-decent to me. Does that answer your question?”

“Since you were  _ fifteen?!” _ _   
_ “Hey… shut up.”

“Little baby Sanji had a crush on me!”   
“What about you, dipshit?”

“Oh, I’ve always thought you were cute as hell. Maybe I would’ve told you, if you let me get within two feet of you back then.”

“So you… and I...” Sanji frowns, then slumps back down onto the pillows. “Oh my god, how  _ stupid _ are we?”

“Do you really want an answer for that?”

“If you knew, why didn’t you tell me sooner?!”

“Heh, I actually kinda forgot until you brought up the hit-and-run again. And it got me wondering if you still meant it.”

Sanji grabs his hand and kisses along his knuckles.

“I always have.”

  
  
  


* * *

_ *Er, I'm not sure if Cupboard Love has an American equivalent or any other language for that matter. It means showing affection to someone only when they're making you food or doing you a favour? Like a cat rubbing against your legs when you're opening a can of tuna. Luffy does love Sanji a lot, but Sanji meant it in a lovingly sarcastic way. I had no idea this phrase was just from my country wOW anyway… _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND DEN SANJI CHEATS ON ACE WITH ZORO BC THEY WERE MEANT TO B TOETHER THE WHOLE TIME- no, not really. I’m sorry. Sorry if your teeth are rotting from the disgustingly happy ending, I felt like I had to give it rom-com levels of cute for all the angst i dumped on you in the first 2 chapters. HOPE I DELIVERED.
> 
> In case it wasn’t clear, yes, Ace is trans and yes Sanji knows. I’ve been wanting to include this for some time now for no other reason than it just felt right to me. It wasn’t my intention to have this be a surprise or make it a huge ‘thing’ but I couldn’t think of a way to subtly include it until now. I thought I’d try and make that at least sorta clear before I go on to writing… anything else :^)  
If that makes you mad well… stay that way I guess. Yours truly is nonbinary/trans masc and also stronger than you, so don’t try any shit.  
It feels weird that this has been in the works since august...ish? But I’ve been busy with Tiger by the Tail and other assorted crap. Sorry ‘bout that.  
Ace and Sanji’s story isn’t over yet! There might be a mini smut chapter if I’m not totally dead after I upload this. And yeah if you read Tiger by the Tail you might be thinking “hey Jesse… didn’t you say they broke up!?” and yes, but they at least had a solid few happy years together before that. And I have more plans for them in the future ;)… it would be weird if I put them through all this trouble only for them to break up and never get together again.   
BUt all that shit’s another story for another time, I hope y’all enjoyed!!!
> 
> (also holler if you spotted the extremely brief Zoro cameo, I couldn’t resist.)

**Author's Note:**

> OOOOOOOOOOOOH TWISTY CURVEBALL BOOM BETCHA WEREN’T EXPECTING THIS TO BE MULTI CHAPTERED????!!!! Well, you did cause it's at the top of the fuckin page but I digress...  
So yeah, in this world Luffy did manage to save his brother, I can't tell you what I have planned for Ace in the future but he's safe... for now at least.  
As I write this i’ve really hurt my hand and i need some time to think about where this is goin, which is why it's long since ceased to be a oneshot. Just… Sanji’s been making me FEel some shit lately, y’know????  
I hope you enjoyed!!!!!!


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